Ghost
by teardrop456
Summary: I risked everything for you. I didn't come back so you could reject me! Everything will go back to normal, to the way it was. And if I have to kill to get you to notice me, then so be it... I will kill for your love... If only you'll love me again...
1. Prologue

_He sighs into my hair. _

_"Emily," he whispers, his hands running through my hair. "Emily. I love you."_

_My eyes widen as I lie there, speechless. I stutter to repeat his words, to tell him what he wants to hear. But it's too late; he's pulling away, and suddenly I'm surrounded by darkness. _

_"Emily," his voice echoes in my head. "Don't you love me anymore?"_

_I shiver as the voice turns angry. He's always angry at me- why is he always angry with me?!_

_And suddenly, I'm in his car. His shiny red car. He's sitting beside me, both hands clenching the wheel, a beer bottle balanced on his lap. _

_"Slow down!" I scream, but he doesn't hear me. Doesn't see me. His foot pushes down on the accelerator, and he laughs as the car speeds up. He doesn't see the turn- why doesn't he see the turn?!_

_"Turn the car!" I shriek, but he still doesn't look at me. I pinch- I scratch- I bite, but he won't move; he won't even look at me. _

_And now we're off the road, soaring in the air over a cliff. Falling down – down into water._

_I float away peacefully in the water, waiting for him to catch up to me. I look back-_

_And he isn't there. He's gone; both him and his car. All that's left is the echoes of his scream, bouncing along the waves…_

I sat up in bed, my heart pounding. Fat drops of salty tears are streaming down my face, and I can't make them stop.

"Pat-" I whispered. "I-I love you. P-p-please c-come back."

I glanced around the room, desperate for a miracle. When nothing happened, I buried myself into my pillow and tried to muffle my sobs. I didn't want my parents to come in and see that I was crying. Again. They'd already seen enough of that over the past year. I was sure they were sick of it.

In fact, it's been exactly a year since he died.

I looked at the clock- 2:00 am. I stood up and grabbed my keys. I didn't stop to think, just blindly ran through the house, and out the door.

I started the car. I could see my mom in the rear view mirror; she had thrown open the front door. She was yelling something, but I didn't listen. I pulled out of the driveway and roared off down the street, wiping the tears from my eyes. Through the blur I could barely see the road.

An hour later I found it.

The Cemetery was just as I remembered it; orderly, filled with neat rows of tombstones, each quietly advertising different people. I slipped through the gate and made my way up the rows of stones. I highly doubted the cemetery was guarded, and if it was, I didn't care.

The sky was starting to lighten now, so I could make out the inscriptions of the stones. It took me awhile to find his- I hadn't been here in so long- but find it I did.

The stone was an unoriginal grey, carved into a perfect rectangle. I dropped to my knees in front of the grave and held out my hand. Gingerly, my fingers traced along the words etched into stone, and I read them out loud to myself.

"Patrick Bell, born 1989, died 2007.

"The good die young."

I bowed my head, my hand still resting on the tomb, and let the tears drip down my face. I could practically feel his arms around me; the comfort of him holding me, while whispering sweet things into my ear-

I looked up, and found no one there.

I cried for what was lost, for what could have been. I cried for Patrick, and I cried for myself. I cried because I missed him so much, so much that my heart felt as if it was being pulled out of my chest. Ripped out by his hands, because it belonged to him, and only him.

Then I got angry.

"Why'd you have to go drinking that night, you stupid asshole!" I yelled, still sobbing. "Why'd you have to drive that night? I could have driven you. You should've called!

"Now you're gone, and you've left me here all by my fucking self. Asshole. Why'd you have to go and die?!"

I held my face in my hands. "I tried to tell myself that I've moved on," I whispered to his grave. "I've even got a date on Saturday. A date!"

I felt the wind stir the grass around me. I imagined the wind was his touch, that he was holding me. His fingers tangling into my hair-

"I still love you," I whispered. "Please come back."

But I knew that however many times I begged him to come, he wouldn't. He was gone, and he couldn't come back.

……………………………………………………

**Author Note:** Hey guys. I'm baaaaaaaaaack! Please review!


	2. Wish you were here

……………………………………..

_Wish you were here…_

……………………………………..

A soft hand brushed my shoulder, and I flinched.

"Pat?" I murmured, still half asleep.

The hand shook me awake without mercy. "Emily, it's time to go home."

"Mmm," I mumbled. I curled into a tighter ball. "I'm not leaving Pat."

"Emily!" the voice snapped. "Pat isn't here!"

I curled up into a tighter ball. "Go away."

The voice was furious now. "Emily, Pat is _dead!"_

I felt a pair of arms lift me up, and I snuggled into the hold. "I know," I murmured.

The voice said nothing, but I was carried to a car just outside the gate. I didn't open my eyes as I was set down on the seat.

"I don't want to go home."

"Your parents are worried sick!" I now recognized his voice. It was Jeff, my best friend. My very _angry_ best friend. "I'm taking you home!"

"I want to sleep."

"So sleep now."

"…" I let myself drift into nothingness, trusting Jeff to get me home safely.

Hours later I woke up. Expecting my mother to come storming in screaming like a banshee, I huddled under the covers. I waited for the inevitable; but it never came.

Throwing the blankets off my face, I glanced around the room. The first thing that I noticed was that the room smelt like boy, and the second thing I noticed was that, judging by the explosion of video games, books and clothes all over the floor, I was definitely in Jeffrey's room.

Vaguely I recalled Jeff lugging me into his car. Wasn't he supposed to take me home? Why was I in his room?

I knew I was perfectly safe in his room. Jeffrey was my best friend; he'd never try to take advantage of me. In fact, he'd probably laugh if I accused him of that, and then make a joke about having incest or something. (He always called me his lil' sis. Even if I was only a month younger than him.) I'd probably laugh too; Jeff always managed to make me smile.

I pushed the heavy covers off of me and headed down the empty hallway. I could hear the sounds of dishes being knocked around; I could also smell the faint scent of Kraft Dinner, which is the only thing that Jeff could cook without burning his house down.

"Good morning sleepy head," Jeff smiled slightly as I entered the kitchen.

"Morning?" I asked, slightly surprised.

"You've been asleep since noon yesterday," Jeff said dryly. "Now sit down and eat. It's my specialty."

I sat down and grabbed the bowl of steaming cheese noodles. "Thanks for rescuing me yesterday."

Jeff shoveled a spoonful of KD into his mouth. "Your welcome."

"One whole year…"

Jeff nodded and continued to eat in silence. I watched him carefully. "So why am I here, and not at home? Did my house burn down?"

Jeff gave me a funny look, seeing as how I sounded eager about the house burning part. "Your parents had to work; I told them you were in hysterics, so they decided that I should handle it."

I frowned. "I'm not insane, you know."

"But you were."

I couldn't argue that. "How 'bout we play some video games later? James Bond?"

"Lame," Jeff groaned. "The best game to play is World War IV. You have to make strategies as well as conquer different territories, and-"

"Whatever Jeff," I couldn't help but crack a smile at his geekiness. "I just don't want to go home."

……………………………………………..

"Emily Juliana Richler!" my mother shrieked as soon as I walked into the door. I flinched, but tried to keep my composure. "Do you have _any_ idea how worried we were?!"

"Sorry mom," I said, tiredly. Then I gave her a hug, and kissed dad on the cheek. "I'm fine."

My dad glanced up at me from his newspaper. Suddenly I noticed that his already graying hair looked a little bit more grey than usual. "Are you sure, honey?"

"Yes dad," I smiled at him, but we both knew it wasn't a real smile.

"Don't you ever take off like that again," my mother clucked, flicking her long, died blonde hair with her finger. "We were worried sick!"

"I know."

"It's been a year, Emily! A whole year!"

"I know!" I tried to control my anger, pushing it down. I turned away from my parents.

"Honey, your mother's right," my dad said gently. "Patrick's been gone for a year now. If you're still very upset about it, we could get you some help. Maybe I could take you to a psychiatrist-"

"Dad," I turned to him and took his hand. Then I took Mom's. I looked at them both, wondering if I should tell them the truth. But I decided against it. "I'm fine. I loved him, that's all. I'm having a hard time moving on, but I _am_ moving on. Okay?"

"Alright," my dad said, defeated. My mom looked suspicious, as if she didn't really believe what I was saying.

"I'm gonna go get some sleep," I told them, pulling away. "It's been a long day."

"Goodnight, honey." My dad went back to his newspaper.

"Oh, mom-" I took a deep breath. I knew I was making a mistake. "Could you help me pick out an outfit tomorrow? I have a date."

"A _date?"_ they both looked at me disbelievingly. Then my mom broke out in a big smile. "That's great, honey! Of course I'll help you pick your outfit out!"

"Thanks mom." I made a beeline for my room, all too ready to collapse into the familiar world of sleep.

…………………………………………………

I sighed as I stared in the mirror, watching as my mom played with my hair. "You look beautiful, sweetheart."

And I did. My petite figure was hugged by a deep purple summer dress, which reached about mid thigh. The purple brought out the purple in my eyes, as well as accented my black hair.

My makeup was very neutral; not too done up. I had threatened my mom several times when she'd tried to approach me with lipstick and various colored eye shadow.

The result was a soft, even face, long black eyelashes and neutral lips. Perfect for me, in other words.

Right now my mom was trying to figure out what to do with my hopelessly pin straight hair.

She poked several pins into my head. "Ow!"

"Sorry," she mumbled, sighing as the pins fell straight out of my too smooth hair. "I guess you'll have to leave it down."

"That's fine," I glanced at the clock. "I have to go!"

"Alright," my mom smiled at me in the mirror. "Don't forget your shoes."

I slipped on a pair of three inch heels- an effort to make me seem tall. Which I was not. In fact, I was only 5 ft 3, and I was done growing. I was shorter than most middle school kids. In fact, when I was in middle school myself, I'd been the shrimp of the class. Along with Jeff, who was constantly teased because he was short _and_ a boy.

His size was the main reason we became friends.

I smiled slightly at the thought. Jeff was so tall now, I had to look up at him to see his face.

The doorbell rang, bringing me back to present. I kissed my mom goodbye and trotted down the hallway, and down the stairs.

"Hey," greeted a warm voice. I looked up at my date, Robert Wesley. I smiled slightly up at him as he grinned down at me nervously. He was really handsome- muscular, with soft blonde hair and a pair of startling blue eyes. He was a jock, but a quiet one. Smart, even.

Still, he wasn't really my type. The only reason I'd asked him out was because Jeff had convinced me to. Something about moving on with my life, or something.

I smiled shyly up at him.

"You look beautiful," he said. I noticed a faint blush lit up his cheeks.

"Thanks."

He offered his arm. "Ready to go?"

"Sure thing." I looked up the stairs to see my mom smiling proudly. I turned away from her and grabbed his arm.

Rob was a careful driver. So calm, as he turned the car smoothly around the corners. I found myself comparing it to Pat's reckless driving, which had excited and scared me at the same time. Then I shook the thought away.

"So, where are we headed to?"

"I thought we could go to Mark's Café," Rob said. "It's a nice little hang out not too far from here. Is that alright?"

He sounded so concerned about my opinion. I knew that Jeff often hung out at that café, and he had said only good things about it.

"Yeah, that's fine."

The car ride passed in awkward silence. I was uneasy, uncomfortable, sitting in silence. But I didn't know what to say. I didn't really know Rob at all.

When we reached the café, I breathed a sigh of relief. Before I could even move a muscle, Rob had already gotten out of the car and opened the door for me. I found myself blushing, and remembered how Pat used to do that for me…

Sighing, I stepped out of the car and walked ahead of Robert, and into the café.

The date actually went very well. We talked about little things, like school and hobbies. I started to like him as we talked. He was so quiet and _polite_.

I found myself liking him more and more. For a few seconds, I even forgot about everything.

Even Pat.

"Emily?"

I glanced up at the person who was calling me. Jeff met my eyes as he made his way towards our table.

Then I watched- I watched as his friendly gaze took in Rob's frame. His face grew darker. And darker. I swear I saw his eyes change color on the spot, from soft brown to black.

I squinted at him, trying to see if it was a trick of the light. I couldn't tell.

But something about the way he was walking- _stalking-_ towards our table, it seemed so, well, _hostile._

"Jeff?" I asked uncertainly.

"Emily, who is this _boy?_" he spat. I stared at him, shocked for a few seconds.

"Jeff, this is Rob. Remember? I asked him out." I looked over at my best friend, who was standing right beside me now, completely still. "Jeff, what's wrong?"

Jeff started to shake; his hands were clenched in tight fists. His eyes were trained on Rob, his mouth pressed into a thin line. Rob stared at him, alarmed.

"Hey man, you okay?" Rob asked.

Without a word, Jeff punched Rob in the face.

I stared, mouth open, as Rob toppled onto the floor, clutching his bleeding nose.

Jeff looked mad, ready to pounce on him. "Jeff! What did you do?!"

Jeff turned his head slowly towards me, a frightening smile on his face. "I punched him."

Well no shit, Sherlock.

I ran over to Rob, kneeling beside him. "Rob? Are you okay?"

"Jesus Christ," Rob swore. He glared up at Jeff. "Geez man, I didn't know she was your girlfriend!"

"Keep your hands off of my girl," Jeff hissed. "Or I'll kill you."

I stared at Jeff for a minute, a look of pure disgust on my face. "Jeff, what are you talking about?! I'm not your girlfriend!"

Jeff swung his head towards me and snarled, dark eyes boring into mine. I leaned back a bit, trying to get away from him. His strange behavior was scaring me.

By now we'd attracted the attention of the whole café. The owner, Mark, made his way over.

"I'm going to have to ask you to leave." he said, with a very unfriendly look on his face. "And don't come back."

I grabbed Rob's arm, fully intent on helping him up, but he shook me off. "Forget it Emily. I'm not dating you if you're with him."

"But I'm not dating him!" I stared at Rob, ignoring the pair of black eyes that were shooting daggers into my back. I wasn't sure what was up with Jeff, but I wasn't going to look at him until he stopped being stupid.

Rob gave me a disbelieving look, then got up and left. I stood up slowly, only to find a pair of arms wrapped around me from behind.

"I've missed you so much," Jeff murmured into my hair. I fought out of his grasp and pushed him away.

"What the fuck if your problem?!" I hissed. "That was my first date since… you know… and you just ruined it!"

I stormed out of the café and into the now empty street. Rob had taken off, leaving me with no ride home. I cursed him silently; although he had a perfect right to leave, I was still pissed.

"Come on, baby, don't be like that," Jeff had wrapped his arms around me again. "Haven't you missed me?"

"I saw you just yesterday!" I snapped. "Get off of me, Jeff. Or so help me, I'll kick you were the sun don't shine."

But he wouldn't let go. In fact, his grip became stronger. So strong that I could hardly breathe.

"I'm never letting you go." He told me, murmuring into my hair. "I love you too much."

I froze on the spot. "Wh- Wha?"

"I know I look different," Jeff purred in my ear. "But can't you sense it? Can't you sense who I am?"

"Huh?" I struggled to pull away. Jeff was acting too weird. "Jeff stop! Let go!"

His grip around me became painful.

"Don't you remember me, love?" he flipped me around and kissed me right on the lips; a chaste kiss, but it still scared me. My best friend was kissing me. This was so wrong.

"Don't you remember me?" his voice was softer now. His black eyes looked into mine.

"Emily, my beautiful Emily," he sighed. "It's me, Patrick. _Your_ Pat."

My eyes widened, and I felt myself begin to tremble.

I looked up at him. Then I brought my knee up, kicked him where I'd threatened to.

Then I made a run for it.

………………………………….

Disclaimer: I do not own Kraft Dinner, James Bond or World War IV. I wish I did own them, because then I would be rich

Thanks to my first reviewers, Italiangurlinamessedupworld, and porkypick!! Love you guys!


	3. Don't touch me, please

………………………………………….

_Don't touch me, please…_

…………………………………………………_._

The bell rang for first period as I stepped into the school. I had purposely driven to school to avoid a certain someone. I was still furious at him for Saturday. I'd ignored all of his calls, and refused to see him when he'd come to visit.

I trotted down the hallway to my locker, grabbed my books and headed to class, which happened to be English.

Ms. Barb looked up as I came in. "Late, Ms Richler?"

"I slept in."

The teacher nodded and I sat down, my gaze avoiding the pair of eyes that were practically burning holes through the back of my head.

_Asshole!_ I shouted mentally at him, getting out my notes.

You know, I wasn't even overreacting over this whole thing. He had pretended to be my boyfriend- my _dead_ boyfriend. Why? I wasn't sure. Maybe he did it to get me to see how ridiculous it was to wish for Pat to come back. Maybe he'd done it just to scare me out of my depression. Maybe he'd wanted to scare Rob away. Or maybe he'd thought it was funny.

No matter why he'd done it; I would never _ever_ forgive him.

The bell rang for the end of class and I was out of my seat like a shot. I heard Jeff call my name, but I kept running. I would avoid him for the rest of my life if I had to.

Second and third period passed, and I grew panicked when lunch came around. There was literally nowhere in the school I could hide, except the girls washroom. Which didn't seem like a very nice spot to eat lunch in.

As I grabbed my lunch, I bit my lip and thought about my options. Maybe he wouldn't think to look for me in the library…

"Emily?"

I glanced up at the friendly voice, belonging to Rob.

"Oh Rob!" I smiled up at him nervously as he walked towards me. "Listen, I'm really sorry about Saturday-"

"It's fine. I should've known you'd have a boyfriend."

I frowned slightly. Was that a compliment, or an insult?

"Jeff isn't actually my boyfriend," I told him sternly. "He was playing a joke on me the other night."

"Breaking my nose was a joke?!" Rob looked a bit pissed. "No way, Emily. He has to be your boyfriend. No guy would randomly punch another guy for no reason at all. Why are you lying to me?"

"I'm not lying!" I was furious now. "He's my best friend! I'd never go out with him!"

"Emily-"

I opened my mouth to protest again, but someone else beat me to it.

"She's not lying."

Jeff walked up to us and stood beside me. I refused to look at him, my own eyes trained on Rob.

"She's not my girlfriend," Jeff said calmly. "I'm like her brother. I just overreacted last night. Sorry about the nose."

Rob looked as if he wanted to knock Jeff's brains out. "Listen, asshole-"

"Rob," I snapped. Rob relaxed slightly and trained his eyes on me. "Don't start a fight now. It's not worth it."

Rob hesitated a bit, and then turned to Jeff. "You shouldn't pull shit like that. People get the wrong idea." Then he turned to me. "I'll talk to you later, then?"

"Sure." Good ol' Rob. So forgiving.

I, however, am not so forgiving. As soon as Rob was out of sight, I whipped around to face Jeff.

"You fucking asshole!" I slapped him, hard. "I'm never going to forgive you!"

"What?!" Jeff looked taken aback, his right cheek turning an angry red. "Listen, Emily. I don't know what went on on Saturday. Maybe someone spiked my coffee, or something-"

"What are you talking about?!" I shrieked. "You pretended to be my boyfriend to scare off Rob, or something! That's sick, Jeff! Pretending to my - my _dead_ boyfriend!"

I felt the tears drip onto my neck, soaking my nice shirt.

"Emily, geez," Jeff looked really taken aback now. "I'm telling you, I don't know what happened. It was like someone took over my body, and made me say and do stuff I wouldn't normally do!"

"That's total bullshit, Jeff!" my hand itched to slap him again. "Don't talk to me. Don't call my house. Don't come near me. I don't want to see you or talk to you."

I spun on my heel and tried to leave.

"Wait!"

His sweaty hand clamped around my wrist and he pulled me towards him. I noticed that his eyes were black again- what the hell?

"Jeff, what drug are you on?" I spat, fighting out of his grasp.

"Darling," Jeff purred, his hands clamping around both my wrists. I tried to fight him off, but he wouldn't let go. "It's me again!"

"Jeff, let me go!" I screeched, wiggling against his grasp. He pulled me closer until I was trapped in his arms. "I'll scream!"

"No you won't."

And, just like that, he kissed me.

_Ew. _Ewewewewew_! _

This felt like incest. "Murmph!"

Me smiled into my lips and kissed me harder, his tongue demanding entrance. I kept my lips sealed shut, my eyes glaring into his. Then I lifted my foot, and crashed it down on his foot.

Jeff yelped and let me go, all but dropping to the ground.

"Don't you ever touch me again," I hissed. "You sick, sick _bastard!_"

Then I stomped off down the hall, off to the library. I'd hide in there till classes started, behind a bookshelf or something. No one would ever look for me there.

……………………………………………..

"So wait- he actually _kissed_ you?!" Lisa was speechless for a second. "Jeff- your best friend, who's always been like a brother to you, _kissed you?!_ On the _lips?_"

I sighed into the phone. "Yeah, I know. Sick, right?"

"_Sick!_" Lisa squealed. "Such drama!"

"I know," I bit my lip. "What do you think I should do? I avoided him all day today, but I don't know how long I can keep this up…"

"Well, do you like him?" Lisa asked. "Like, _like_ him like him?"

"No!" I glared at the air in front of me.

"Then tell him to shove off," Lisa suggested. "He's your best friend. If he respects you he won't force himself on you."

"I think he's on drugs," I said suddenly.

"Huh?"

"His eyes keep changing colors." I paused, thinking about it. Both times he'd started to act weird, his eyes had turned black. "It scares me."

"Some people's eyes do that," Lisa pointed out. "I've heard that some people's eye color's change depending on their moods."

Hmm, that could be it…. But I still wasn't sure… his eyes had never done that before. Ever.

"Maybe you should call him…"

"Yeah, maybe."

"I'm sure things will work out. Anyways-"

Lisa continued to chatter away over the phone while I was lost in thought. Should I call him, and tell him what Lisa had said about respect? But then, how could Lisa know anything? She was miles away, living with her grandparents on cottage country. She couldn't see what was really going on…

After a lull of silence, I told Lisa I had to go, said goodbye and hung up the phone.

Then I dialed Jeff's number, and waited for him to pick up.

_Ring. Ring. Ring._

"Hello?"

"Hey Jeff, it's Emily."

"Emily! Emily, I'm so sor-"

"I don't want to hear it," I said coldly. "I just wanted to tell you something."

I paused, and took a deep breath. "Jeff, I don't like you. Like, I like you, but not in that _way_."

"I completely understand. But Em-"

"If you love me, Jeff- as a sister or something more- then you'll stay away from me. Okay?"

A pause of silence.

"What?!" Jeff spluttered. "But Em, you gotta understand-"

"Jeff." I took a deep breath. "Leave. Me. Alone."

Then I hung the phone up, and lay down on my bed, staring up at my ceiling. My eyes traced the familiar outlines of the clouds painted on the smooth surface.

As I lay there in silence, I felt a familiar feeling coarse through me.

Loneliness.


	4. Every step you take

……………………………………………

……………………………………………..

_Every step you take…_

………………………………………………………

Turns out, avoiding Jeff was much harder than I thought.

It's not that he was following me; every time he saw me, he'd turn around and walk away. It's just that, well, we hung out in the same places, and had the same classes. Plus, it was hard to avoid him purposely all day when we'd been stuck together ever since sixth grade. I often found myself wondering what Jeff was doing after school, if I could copy his English notes, etc.

The truth was, I missed him.

So, about a week later when he asked to talk to me, I agreed. Sue me!

I followed him out onto the school lawn, and up over the hill. He sat down on the soft grass and I plunked down beside him, weary as ever.

His eyes were a normal brown- that much I could tell. So I was safe, right?

"How are you doing?"

I jumped a bit, startled. "Fine." I answered stiffly.

"A week, eh?"

"Yeah."

A pause of silence.

"I have to tell you something."

"What?"

"I'm not really sure how to say this…"

I picked at the grass, waiting for him to speak. He ran his hand through his curly brown hair and bit his lip. "You have to promise you won't scream and run away and call the looney bin."

"Uh," _now_ I was nervous. "I guess."

"Okay," Jeff took a deep breathe. "You know that time I found you at the cemetery?"

"Yeah," what was he getting at, exactly?

"It's hard to explain…" he paused. "I started hearing him around then."

"Huh?" I asked, puzzled. "Him?"

"Him. Pat."

I stiffened, ready to bolt if I had to. "You heard him?!"

"Yeah," Jeff said. "He sort of spoke to me in my head."

"WHAT?!" That's it; my best friend was officially a Looney Toon. I stood up, and turned to leave.

"You said you wouldn't run away," Jeff pointed out timidly.

"I'm not running, I'm _walking_ away." I moved towards the school. "You're insane!"

Jeff caught my wrist lightly. "I'm serious, Em! He's inside me, and sometimes he completely takes over!"

I turned towards him to give him a piece of my mind, and saw his eyes slowly turn black.

"He takes over when he senses you near him…"

The grip on my wrist grew tight, and I stared at Jeff in fear. His pupils were completely black now, and his face twisted in a sneer. "Emily."

I stumbled forward as he pulled me into his grasp, and I landed sitting in his lap. His arms snaked around me and held me close. I was too stunned to try to get away.

"Jeff?" I whimpered. Then I looked up at the man who was holding me. "Pat?" I asked timidly.

Jeff smiled. Or was it Pat? I was very confused.

"Hello," Jeff purred into my ear. "I've missed you, baby. Why've you been avoiding me?"

My brain started to work again and I struggled in his hold- I had to get away. There was no way that Pat was in Jeff's body; that was a nightmare- impossible-

"Jeff." I said firmly this time. "I know that Pat isn't in there, so stop pretending. Pat is dead, and he isn't coming back!"

Suddenly I was thrown on the ground, Jeff lying on top of me, crushing my lungs and cutting off my air. I gasped as he grabbed my wrists and pinned them above my head. His coal eyes burned into mine.

"I risked everything for you," he hissed, his mouth inches from mine. "I didn't come back so you could reject me. You will be my girlfriend, and everything will go back to the way it was!" he leaned down and licked my neck, from my collar bone to my ear. I shivered and turned my head away, not wanting to watch him. "And if I have to kill to get you to notice me, then so be it!"

He kissed my neck as I gasped in alarm.

Kill.

Did he just say kill?

"What the fuck is wrong with you, Jeff?!"

"I'm not Jeff," he said. "I'm Pat. I came back, darling. Just for you."

"W-wha-"

And he kissed me. Only this time it wasn't a chaste kiss. It was a fiery, bruising kiss. I squirmed in his grasp, but that seemed to make him a bit... erm, excited.

_This is sick._ I felt like puking as his lips attacked mine. But then I thought, well, what if it was Pat?

Or maybe I was a Looney Toon too.

"Geroff!"

"No." he trailed kisses down my neck to my cleavage, and I shrieked. He quickly placed a hand over my mouth, but I attacked him with my free hand. No way was I letting my psycho best friend molest me. I clawed at his face until he let go of my mouth and grabbed for my free hand. Then I yelled, and yelled and yelled, hoping that someone would hear.

His lips captured mine again, blocking of my screams.

"Hey!" someone yelled, and I almost lost consciousness I was so relieved. Jeff sat up, his hands still holding onto my wrists.

"Can't a guy make out with his girlfriend anymore?" he asked the newcomer dryly.

"She was yelling, man," the guy pointed out. I looked up at him- some guy from the football team.

I opened my mouth to speak, but Jeff leaned down and whispered in my ear. "If you say one word, I'll beat the shit out of him."

My eyes widened. On one hand, I wanted to be rescued. On the other, I didn't want anyone else to get hurt.

Luckily, someone else made the decision for me.

"Let her go."

This was a new voice, yelled from someone still quite some distance away. I turned my head towards the voice and watched as Rob came running up. The relief must have been apparent on my face, because when Jeff looked down at me he grew absolutely furious.

"This isn't over," he hissed, just so I could hear. "Remember what I said. Don't say I didn't warn you…"

Then he got up off of me, and raised his hands. A gesture of surrender.

"Sorry lads," Jeff said. "Bells about to ring."

It did, right then. Rob stared at Jeff, his eyes hardening. Then he glanced at me, my disheveled hair and swollen lips. He saw the look in my eyes- pure anger.

"Why don't you two head in?" Rob suggested. "I need to talk to Emily for a second."

To my surprise, Jeff just nodded and left. After glancing at me of course. His eyes told me not to tell Rob anything, or I would regret it.

Pfft. Rob could take him any day.

"Are you alright?" Rob asked.

"No," I said lowly. "He forced himself on me. Again!"

"Again?!"

"He's my best friend; kissing him is like kissing an older brother. _Gross_. But he keeps jumping me randomly!" I curled my hands into fists. "It's like he's a completely different person now!"

"Maybe he's finally hit puberty," Rob joked. I glared at him, and moved to walk past him. His hand reached out to grab my wrist, but he seemed to think better of it.

"Maybe he really loves you." Rob offered, his hand dropping to his side.

I stopped in my tracks and blinked stupidly. "Maybe," I said slowly. "But I don't love him, not in that way. I told him that."

"You told him, and he still hasn't left you alone?"

"Nope."

"I'll beat him up for you," Rob offered. I cracked a small smile.

"No thanks," I grabbed his hand and gave it a quick squeeze. "But thanks for offering."

Then I ran inside the school. If I didn't hurry, I was going to be late for Math.

……………………………………………

Disclaimer: I don't own Looney Toons. Need I Say More?

Thanks to my reviewers porkypick, sweet thoughts, UsagiMiyuki and Skylar Kaulitz. Thanks so much guys! Your reviews are what keeps this story going!


	5. Somebody wake me from this

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…………………………………………………..

_Somebody wake me from this nightmare…_

…………………………………………………...

I picked at my food as I sat by myself on the bench. It was a beautiful day outside; the sun was shining, not a cloud in sight. Unfortunately the weather didn't reflect my mood.

Lunches were always like this now: me sitting alone, eating or reading. The only friend I had, Lisa, was in cottage country right now. Jeff was out of question, and Rob was too busy with his jock friends.

So I was left to eat lunch by myself.

Deciding to give up on my lunch, I tossed the soggy sandwich into the garbage and headed inside.

I made my way down the crowded hallways till I reached my locker. Fumbling with the lock, I noticed a piece of paper sticking out of the side of my locker.

Frowning, I grabbed the paper and pulled it out of my locker. I unfolded it carefully and read the note.

' _Emily,_

_I think Pat is planning on doing something tonight. Something to do with Rob. Keep Rob at your side all night. -Jeff.'_

I stared at the note for a second. Then crumpled it up and tossed it into a nearby garbage. Then I set off to find Rob.

What? I knew Jeff wasn't particularly mentally stable right now. The voices in his head could be telling him to attack Rob or something. I couldn't let that happen.

But if the voices were telling him that, how come he had warned me? Don't schizophrenic people kind of agree with the voices, and that's how the trouble starts?

Panicked now, I stood in the middle of the hall, trying to decide what to do. Should I find Jeff and confront him, or grab Rob and warn him?

Since I really didn't want to see Jeff right now, I went to find Rob. Selfish, I know.

"Emily!" he exclaimed, surprised when I walked up. I had found him in the cafeteria with his jock buddies. I waved him over, not wanting to go any further into the cafeteria than the doorway.

He sauntered over slowly, showing off for his friends.

"Rob," I said. "Listen, I-"

Did I really want Rob to know that Jeff heard voices in his head?

"I wanted to know if you'd like to go out again. Maybe to the movies?"

Rob looked startled. Then a pleased grin spread across his face. "Of course!"

I sighed in relief.

"I have a football game tonight though. Maybe we could go after?"

I smiled. "Sure. I'll come to your game- cheer you on and stuff."

Suddenly I was cuddled in his arms as he gave me a big bear hug. "Thanks Em!" He let go quickly. "But what about-"

"Never mind him." I smiled up at Rob. "What time is the game?"

"Eight."

"Alright," I waved goodbye as I trotted down the hall. "See you there!"

……………………………………………..

Turns out, Rob is a super good player. He's also super good looking in his jersey. The blue of the jersey sets his eyes to an advantage. And the blonde hair- all in all yummy. His eyes scanned the crowd while he was warming up, and he somehow managed to find me. Not really sure how, seeing as how there were tons of people there. I smiled at him and he smiled back, and then went back to warming up. He couldn't afford to loose concentration, especially during the game.

They played really well, our team. Although I knew very little about football, I could tell that they'd won by quite a bit. I jumped up and cheered for Rob as the game finished, and then I went out onto the field to find him.

As I crossed the field, I felt a pair of eyes burning into the back of my head. I looked back behind me, and saw that Jeff was sitting in the stands, staring down at me.

Even from here I could tell his eyes were coal black.

I shivered and turned away, jogging quickly towards Rob, who was currently drenching himself with his water bottle.

"Rob!" I yelled excitedly. "Rob you were so _awesome_ out there!"

I cringed at my vocab. 'Awesome' was not the coolest word in the world.

Rob just grinned at me as he panted, his face beat red. Then he whipped off his jersey and flung it on the ground.

Seeing as how Rob had a six pack, I really had no choice but to stare.

"Like what you see?"

Rob was smirking down at me. I felt my cheeks heat up as I looked away.

I could still feel Jeff's gaze on my back, but I refused to meet his eyes again.

"I'm gonna go change," Rob said. "It'll be awhile- coach will want to congratulate us and stuff. Will you wait in the stands?"

"Sure," I sighed. "Be quick!"

Rob flashed me a grin and took off, following his teammates as they made their way to the change rooms.

I sighed again and headed back to the bleachers. At least there were still a lot of people there. Maybe Jeff would have the decency to back off.

I sat down on the bleachers, as far away from Jeff's spot as I could. I refused to look at him, even though I knew his gaze was on my face.

After a few moments, a shadow was cast over me. I sighed and slowly looked up, knowing exactly what was coming. "Hi Jeff."

"Emily," he sneered at me, grabbing my shoulders and pulled me up to standing. "Why were you talking with him?"

"Is that any of your business?" I asked coldly, trying to inch around him.

"Yes," Jeff hissed. "I'm your boyfriend. Of course it's my business."

"You're not my boyfriend," I said lowly, tempted to push him so he'd tumble down the bleachers. "In fact, Rob and I are dating."

Jeff suddenly looked really hurt, vulnerable. His coal eyes softened, and the corners of his mouth pulled down. I stared back at him in surprise.

"But Emily," he whispered. "I love you!"

I frowned. "I don't love you in that way. We've already been through this!"

Suddenly his hands grasped my arms tightly. His head dipped towards mine but I turned away; his lips lingered on my cheek.

"I'm sorry, Emily," he whispered. "I don't want to do this, but if it's the only way…"

He pulled away from me. "You'd better have a good time with Rob tonight, little lady," He whispered. "He might not be here tomorrow…"

I gazed back at Jeff, speechless. "He could kick your ass, Jeff."

"I doubt it," Jeff said. He grinned crazily, and I felt fear grip my heart. Jeff was crazy- he'd kill Rob-

A voice sounded from the field. "Emily!"

I peered over Jeff's shoulder at Rob, who waved back at me from down below.

"Jeff," I looked back at Jeff pleadingly. "Please don't hurt him!"

"I'm not Jeff," Jeff said, smug. "And why not?"

"Because," I paused, biting my lip. "He's my friend."

"I'll leave him alone if you do one thing."

I looked into his devilish eyes, tempted once again to throw him down the bleachers. "What is it?"

"Kiss me." He smiled at my shocked expression. "Right now."

"No way!"

Jeff grabbed my hand and guided it towards his belt. He rested it on his stomach. Only his stomach didn't feel like skin. It felt like… _metal?_

"Feel that?" he hissed. I pulled my hand away from the concealed knife. "Kiss me or the boy gets it."

I stared at him, completely horrified. Then I glanced over his shoulder down at Rob, who was looking up at us as if he was unsure to come and interrupt us or not.

I turned back to Jeff. "If I kiss you, will you promise not to kill him?"

"If you kiss me, I won't kill him unless I have to."

I stared back at him, speechless. Jeff was now a psychopath.

_That's it._ I told myself. _When I get home, I'm calling the police._

Then I kissed him. I kissed him for Rob's sake. Only Rob wouldn't know that. He'd think something entirely different…

I pulled away from Jeff, and looked down at the playing field. Rob was gone.

A sick feeling settled in my stomach as Jeff pulled me towards him again. "Kiss me again."

"Why?"

He grinned at me sickly and poked his knife for emphasis. "Remember…"

"You said you wouldn't kill him if I kissed you."

"I can do worse things than kill," he licked his lips. "Kiss me again. And if you don't listen to me…"

I kissed him. I let him kiss me back. I even let him pull me down the bleachers and towards his car.

"Where are we going?"

"My house," he leaned in close. "No one's home…"

I pulled away, truly afraid now. "I just need to use the washroom."

He frowned as I tried to pull my wrists from his grasp. "Why? You can use the one in my house."

"I have to go _now_."

Nodding his head, he let go of my arm. "Be quick."

I nodded and turned around, trotting away.

Once I reached the washroom, I locked myself in a cubicle and pulled out my cell phone. Thank goodness for cell phones.

With my fingers hovering over the key pad, ready to dial 911, I hesitated. What would I tell the police- what had Jeff really done wrong, besides force himself on me and make death threats?

He could easily deny both these things. And what would I be left with? A really angry Jeff.

Sighing, I shut my phone.

The door opened, and I heard some heavy steps walk in.

"Emily," Jeff whispered. I jumped, startled, and my purse fell on the floor, and my cell phone fell out of my hand. Jeff kicked it away from me, and then tapped lightly on the cubicle door.

"Open up."

"I'm going to the washroom, you perv!"

"I know you're not," he said lowly. "Now open up before I break down the door."

Thinking quickly, I ducked under the semi wall separating the next cubicle from mine. My cell phone was inches away. I reached for it-

And he kicked it away again. "Emily, why are you running? Remember, we were supposed to go back to my house…"

"I had to use the washroom," I said again, with little conviction in my voice.

Jeff sighed. "I'm not stupid." He looked pointedly at my phone. "You still don't trust me…"

He stood in the doorway of the cuticle, blocking off my only escape route. "What is it going to take for you to believe that I'm Pat?!"

I stared at him blankly. "Pat's dead."

"I was," he smirked. "But you pulled me back. Your wanting- even if I had wanted to, I couldn't have ignored it. So I gave up the lives of the only other people I love just to be with you." Suddenly he looked furious. His coal eyes snapped as he reached out and grabbed me by the shoulders, shaking me with all his might. "I gave up my family- all of their souls belong to some demon now. Do you understand? I doomed them. Just to be with you. You fucking bitch!"

He picked me up and sent me flying.

Seconds later I hit the mirrors, which shattered everywhere. I dropped onto the sink, then onto the floor, falling flat on my back on the mirror shards.

Blood dripped from my back, and I watched as it seeped into the cracks of the tile floor. Jeff was now on a complete rant, throwing everything and anything all over the washroom. I curled into a ball and waited for him to calm down.

It had been sort of like this with Pat, when he was alive, only less violent. I remembered how he used to throw things when he was mad; but he never hurt me.

No, this couldn't be Pat… could it?

I lifted my head and searched the floor. Where was my cell phone? If I could only reach it…

I spotted the silver phone lying just in my reach. I grabbed the phone, opened it and started punching in 911.

Jeff saw what I was doing and came at me in a rage, shrieking. He grabbed the phone from me and flung it across the room.

I was fairly sure I'd only managed to punch in the nine.

Defeated, I waited for Jeff to grab that knife out of his belt and stab me with it. I shivered as he knelt beside me, and curled into a tight ball. I wondered how painful it would be, the stabbing. Maybe I'd get lucky and die right away…

"Emily," he sobbed. "Emily- I didn't mean to hurt you so bad-"

I sobbed into my arms as he ran his hands down my back, picking at the pieces of mirror caught in my skin. I cried out in pain as he picked every single little bit out.

"I h-hate y-you," I sobbed. "G-get a-away f-from me!"

"Emily," Jeff pleaded. "I'm sorry!"

There was a pause of silence, maybe a minute long. Then Jeff seemed to come back to life again.

"Oh my god, what did he do?!"

I looked up at him, confused. Then I saw that his eyes had turned back to brown. "J-Jeff?"

"Emily," he looked horrified, staring at the blood that laced his fingers, that covered me and the floor. "Emily!"

"Jeff," I sobbed. "Was that-"

"Pat took over," Jeff admitted, his hands clenched. "I'm sorry."

I sobbed into his shirt as he bent down to hug me.

That was when the door exploded.

I'm not even joking. The bathroom door _exploded._ Into a million pieces, As if we needed more shards of dangerous stuff in this room.

"Hands up," The police man barked at Jeff, his gun pointed straight at him.

I couldn't stop crying enough to really understand what was going on. I watched as the man took Jeff away in handcuffs. I watched as the paramedics came in with a stretcher. I watched the faces around me as I was carried into an ambulance.

Someone climbed into the ambulance with me; I was expecting my mom, but it was actually Lisa.

"Lisa?" I asked weakly. "Wha?"

The paramedic had injected me with some sort of drug- probably to put me to sleep. He had explained that they would have to check to see if any mirror shards injured anything vital, then probably pick out the shards Jeff/Pat/whoever had missed.

"Your cell phone speed dialed me," she explained. "I heard you scream and him yell, so I called the police. They called your mom, who said you were at the school, watching the football game."

I nodded tiredly and closed my eyes.

"Your parents are following behind us in their car." Lisa informed me.

"I'll tell you about it later…" I sighed.

The world went black.

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Author's Note: thanks to UsagiMiyuki, Tenshi.Kimiko, Italiangurlinamessedupworld, Ihaconch, porkypick, and creativeXPRESSIONS. Love u guys!!

As an aside, Emily is clearly in denial. And Pat- he's just psycho. But don't worry, it gets better!!

-_teardrop_

Ps. each of my chapters are song lyrics… can you guess which songs they are??


	6. Through this maze

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_Through this maze of ugliness and greed…_

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"He's in jail now?" Julia asked.

"Yeah," I didn't know why I was so sad about it. Gingerly I switched the phone to my other ear, and rotated my cramped shoulder carefully. "He's in there for assault."

"Well, at least you won't have to worry about him anymore," Julia pointed out. I smiled slightly; well, she had a good point.

But still, I couldn't help feel guilty. "_Pat took over…" "I'm sorry…"_

I closed my eyes and took a deep breath. "I guess not."

"I have to go. Grandma's having a fit over trying to work the television again."

"Good luck with that."

"Thanks." Julia said sarcastically. "Bye."

"Bye."

I hung up the phone and went downstairs to find something to eat. Carefully I walked down the stairs, trying not to shift the bandage on my back too much. Turns out the wounds weren't as bad as the doctor had thought; the mirror shards had only cut shallowly into my skin. Nothing a little disinfectant and polysporin couldn't fix.

The only problem was that I'd have to keep the bandage on for a week so everything could heal properly. The bandage itself was itchy and often very uncomfortable.

I pulled at the bandage some more as I rummaged around the cupboard, looking for junk food.

Spying a bag of Doritos, I grabbed it off the shelf, and opened it up. Glancing at the bag wearily, I knew I was going to regret eating those chips later.

Then I shrugged and dug in. I deserved a treat after all the stress I'd been through.

_Ding-dong._

I stiffened, a chip shoved half way into my mouth.

"Shit!"

_It's Jeff, oh my god! He's come back to kill me!_

I panicked, ducking under the kitchen table, hiding.

Then the more sensible part of my brain kicked in. "Jeff's in jail!" I mumbled, half angry at my self for reacting in such a way.

Then I went to the door and opened it.

"Rob!" I exclaimed, about to give him a big hug. Then I remembered that he'd seen Jeff and me kissing and that I had a really hurting back, so I decided against it.

"Emily," Rob smiled tightly. "Hey, can I come in for a sec?"

"Sure," I chirped, holding the door open. For some odd reason I was really happy to see him. Maybe it was because he was so… I don't know. _Normal._

As soon as I shut the front door, Rob wrapped me in a big bear hug.

"Ow!" I yelled, right into his ear.

"Sorry," he let go of me, and I stretched my back awkwardly to make the stinging go away. "This is all my fault."

"What?" I looked at the guilty look on his face. "Oh, don't be silly, Rob. If it's anyone's fault it's Jeff's."

I slipped past him and made my way down the hall. "You hungry?"

"No," Rob grumbled, following me a bit too closely. "This is my fault, Em. I should have beaten the shit out of him when I saw him talking to you! Then none of this would've happened."

"Rob, you couldn't have beaten the shit out of him," I grabbed the Doritos bag and continued eating.

"Why not?!" he was a bit miffed now. "I'm stronger than him!"

"Uh," I swallowed quickly. "He had a knife."

"WHAT?"

"Yeah. Like a big, scary kitchen knife. Tucked under his shirt," I paused. "Hence why I kissed him right in front of you."

"He threatened you with it?"

"No," I said truthfully. "He threatened _you_ with it."

Rob closed his eyes for a second, sitting perfectly still.

"Hey Rob, you okay?"

When Rob still didn't move, I walked over to the kitchen table where he was sitting, and slapped him lightly across his arm.

His eyes shot open, and he looked at me in wonder.

"You went along with his plan because he threatened to hurt me?"

I thought about it, and then nodded.

Gently, Rob reached forward and captured both of my hands in his. Immediately I cursed my choice of eating Doritos- cheese crumbs were all over my fingertips.

See, I told you I'd regret eating them.

"Then this really is all my fault," Rob murmured, his eyes sad. Then he leaned forward and kissed me.

The kiss was soft, light as a feather. A weird tingling feeling filled my stomach, and I felt almost giddy as he deepened the kiss. My hands rested lightly in his, and I felt very safe, right then.

Rob pulled back, and licked his lips.

"Mmm," he murmured. "Doritos."

I blushed like crazy as he cracked a smile.

Curse those Doritos.

I smiled shyly back at him.

"I'm sorry about everything." Rob murmured.

"You're forgiven," I smiled. "Jeff's in jail anyway. We won't have to worry about him for awhile."

"How long?"

"A couple years."

"Well then," Rob paused, and then pulled me closer, his hands on my hips. "You know, we still haven't finished our second date yet."

I giggled like the teenage girl I am. "Maybe I could interest you with one of our movies? There's no one home…"

Rob grinned again and nuzzled my neck. "Sounds good."

…………………………………………

_I was sitting by the river, staring down at the water. I was looking for someone; waiting for them to come. But I couldn't remember who it was. I stood up to leave, but a hand stopped me._

_"I'm here, Emily," Pat said, his hair shining in the sun. _

_"I'm going home." I told him, turning away. But he wouldn't let me leave. _

_"You don't want me anymore, Emily?" _

_"You took too long," I told him. _

_He looked angry now, but I managed to wench myself away. I headed up the yellow brick path, up towards my house. _

_"I'll find you, Emily!" Pat yelled, stepping back into the lake. _

_I looked back down at Pat, and watched as his face morphed into that of Jeff's; he was half himself, half Jeff._

_"You look weird," I told him, before opening my back door and going into the house. _

_"Emily!" _

I sat up in bed, sheets tangled around me. I could have sworn I'd felt someone kiss me.

My eyes searched my room, but there was no one there…

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Disclaimer: I don't own Doritos. But I think I will go eat some right now. :P Do you think a cute guy would show up if I did? Hmm…

Thanks to all my reviewers: Ihaconch, Bumbledbee, porkypick, Italiangurlinamessedupworld, LaLaFaery, UsagiMiyuki, Skylar Kaulitz, Tenshi.Kimiko, and raeroochella. Love you guys!

Ps this was definitely a filler chapter… Because I'm trying to decide which way this story will go. I have one option figured out but it's not very original, so I'm trying to figure other ways out…

_-Through this maze of ugliness and greed-_ _One Headlight, by The Wallflowers_


	7. Maybe I'm the one

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………………………………………….

_Maybe I'm the one…_

………………………………………….

I parked the car in the school parking lot and made my way to the school. The _ugly_ school, with its peach colored bricks and green doors. It looked like someone had used vomit as their color pallet. Honestly, why orange and green?

Besides the fact that I was going to school, I felt pretty good about today. I mean, Rob was at school, right? So it couldn't be _that_ bad.

I made my way to my locker through the crowd. When the crowd parted for me I felt a bit embarrassed. I knew what they were talking about. I knew that my story had been all over the news.

I was now the latest target for gossip. Yipee.

I opened my locker and carefully lifted my bag inside. Despite resting at home for a week, my back was still sore. The doctor was supposed to take the bandage off yesterday, but the wounds weren't as healed as he would like. Another week, he had said, just to be safe.

I mentioned that it was itchy, but the doctor had ignored me. Maybe he had selective hearing, or something.

A pair of strong arms circled around my waist, and I stiffened. Then I realized it wasn't Jeff, it was Rob. Yeah, I know. I was a little paranoid. Just a little.

I relaxed into his hug and leaned my head on his chest. "Good morning!"

"Good morning," Rob mumbled. "How's the back?"

"The doctor said I had to keep the bandage on," I pouted.

Rob kissed me lightly on the cheek, and I giggled softly.

I could practically feel everyone staring at us. Probably half of them were disgusted by our PDA. (For those of you who don't know, PDA stands for Public Display of Affection.) The other half was probably storing info for gossip later. Honestly, these people had nothing better to do than talk about _me?!_

I laughed at the strangeness of it all. Then I kissed the underside of Rob's jaw, wiggled out of his grasp, and took off for class. If I was late for English again, Ms Barb would definitely give me detention.

As Ms Barb took attendance, the daily announcements were read out over the intercom. Stuff about sports, and clubs. I generally didn't even listen to announcement. Who wants to listen to such falsely cheerful voices at this time in the morning?!

But today, one announcement particularly caught my attention.

"_Would Emily Richler please come down to the office after the announcements."_

Instantly, every person in the class turned around and sideways and looked at me. I felt my cheeks heat up slightly as I stood up. Ms Barb nodded and I –reluctantly- left the class.

I ran through all the rules I had broken over the last couple weeks as I walked down the deserted hallway. Nothing major, I would think. A few skipped classes. But that would only add up to a couple detentions. So why was I being called down to the office?

As soon as I opened the door, I was ushered into the Vice Principal's room. His name was Mr. Vince, and I had yet to meet him in all my years of high school. In general I wasn't really a bad kid, so I've never really gotten in trouble. I've never even been in Mr. Vince's office.

To be honest, his office wasn't that bad. I mean, it was tacky looking, but it wasn't _scary _or anything. I sat down on the red plastic chair and waited for the V.P.

I glanced disdainfully over his desk. It was covered in tacky antique-but-not-really stuff that you'd find in a flea market.

The only thing worth noting in the entire room was the giant trophy case that stood in the right hand corner. Academic awards were kept in there.

To think that my name will never end up engraved on one of those dusty trophies.

I smiled. School used to be important to me, but now I just didn't care. I wasn't really sure why I didn't care; I just didn't. Not since Pat died.

I froze. It had been so long since I had thought of Pat's death. The memories came back to me, all flooding back bit by bit.

Each memory was still there, but for some reason, I wasn't pained by them. I accepted them, like when someone accepts that their child is getting their tooth pulled but will be back in an hour.

It was like, I thought that Pat was just going to walk around the corner and hug me hello or something.

Shit.

This was all Jeff's fault.

"Emily," I said to myself quietly, resisting the urge to pull at my hair. "Pat is _not_ coming back. He is_ dead._"

But even to me, those words lacked conviction.

I bowed my head into my hands and groaned.

This was _all_ Jeff's fault.

"Good morning, Ms Richler."

Mr. Vince stepped into the office. His balding head clearly screamed "I'm fifty years old!" and so did his formal suit. He had a funny tie on- with blue fish and red water. I stared at his tie for a moment before snapping back to attention.

"Morning, Mr. Vince."

Vince made his way to his chair and sat down. "I trust your day is going well."

"I like your tie," I told him, completely ignoring his comment.

"Thank you. My son bought it for me." His son must be like five years old. "Do you know why you've been called down, Ms Richler?"

"Not really," I said vaguely.

The door opened behind me, and a new figure stepped into the room. It was our principal, Mr. Quaker.

Jeff and I used to always make fun of his name. We called him Mr. Quacker- quack quack. Well, it was funny at the time.

I missed those fun times with Jeff.

"We've called you down to formally apologize." Quaker said. "Our school is supposed to be very safe. Safe enough for you to be able to watch a football game without getting hurt."

"We're sorry that this has happened," Vince added. "It's our duty to watch out for our students. If only we had known sooner-"

"Its fine," I said, my voice flat. I moved my gaze away from their guilty faces and fixed it on the desk. "Like my mom says, there's no use crying over spilt milk."

"We want to know how you've been holding up." Quaker (quack, quack) said again.

"Everything's fine," I told them, smiling falsely. "It'll take me awhile to get over some things. He _was_ my best friend. But I'll be fine_._"

"The incident could have been a lot worse," Vince said thoughtfully. "But I imagine you are still traumatized by it."

"Not really..."

"You took a week off of school to rest, correct?" Quaker asked.

"To help my back heal…"

"Your mother told us you needed to sleep off the incident," Vince pointed out.

"I'm fine!"

"And something else-"

"About the _other_ incident, a year ago-"

"We've kept an eye on you. Both us and your parents. And we've both agreed that you haven't been acting yourself since Pat… passed away."

"Wait a min-"

"Your grades are slipping," Vince said patiently. "You've been skipping classes more and more. You've stopped keeping in touch with most of your friends. You've dropped all your hobbies."

"That doesn't mean I'm not _myself._" I argued back. "Where are you going with this?!"

"We've left you alone for a whole year," Quaker said. "Your mother thought you could work this out on your own. But it's clear that you can't, or won't. And both your parents agree."

"What do you mean, work it out?" I glared at Mr. Quaker. "This isn't some kind of math problem!"

"We want you to see the local psychiatrist," Mr. Vince said, finally getting to the point. I stared at him blankly for a minute, before my face started to burn.

"I don't need to see a freakin' psychopathist!" I yelled, standing now. "I'm not a psycho! I'm over Pat! He's dead, and I'm never going to see him again! I know that!"

I think my yelling just made them all the more smug.

"You also have little control over your emotions," Quaker pointed out smugly. "All the better reason to see a psychiatrist."

"I'm fine," I said lowly. "And I won't see any psychopathists."

"Psychiatrist."

"Whatever."

I shoved my way past Mr. Quaker to the door. I didn't care that these two were the rulers of the school. They were clearly the crazy ones, and I was leaving whether they like it or not.

"Your parents have already agreed," Mr. Vince called out. "Your mom will drive you to all your appointments. Eddie will be expecting you."

"Trust me Ms Richler," Mr Quaker said. I imagined him turning into a duck and then slaughtering him and roasting him over an open campfire. "It's for the best."

I turned around and gave him the finger. Then I left.

…………………………………………..

Author's note: I love this chapter because it shows just how closed minded some people are. They believe that they can help her, even though she doesn't really need help.

It also reminds me of when someone dies… you know, it takes a long time to get over that sort of thing. More than a year. And other people who haven't experienced a loved one die, they just don't get that. They think that a couple months of mourning is okay, and after that you're just being a party pooper.

sigh Oh well, enough of my ranting.

Thanks to: bloodygirl, Italiangurlinamessedupworld, Usagimiyuki, Ihaconch, porkypick, raeroochella, LaLaFeary and Bumbledbee! Love you guys!

-_Maybe I'm the one- Psycho, by Puddle of Mud_


	8. My spirit's sleeping somewhere cold

……………………………………………

…………………………………………….

_My spirit's sleeping somewhere cold…_

……………………………………………..

"Do I really have to go and see this guy?" I asked mom, as we drove along. My mother kept her eyes fixed on the road, but I could tell she had a guilty look on her face.

"The school has requested it," My mother said. "Especially after what happened with Jeff… I think it could help you."

"I'm fine." Wow, I couldn't tell you just how many times I've said those words in the past few weeks. "I don't need help."

"Just try it a few times, okay honey? It might work."

I sighed. "Fine."

"I've already prepaid for two appointments." My mom said. "Just try it. If you still think it's a waste of time after those two appointments, you don't have to go."

"Thanks mom," I had the biggest urge to hug her right then.

"No problem, honey," she ruffled my hair affectionately. Then smoothed down her own hair and checked herself out in the rear view mirror. "We're almost there."

"Great." I muttered. Five minutes later we reached the shrink's house.

It looked normal enough; a small brick house, with a red door and a small porch on the second floor. Over top of the red door was a small sign: 'Here to Help'.

"I don't need help!" I muttered, getting out of the car. My mom followed me up the steps to the front door. I had a feeling she was trying to block my escape route.

I knocked on the door and waited, ignoring the doorbell. I always thought that using the doorbell was too noisy. Mom sighed behind me and tapped her foot impatiently. What was taking this guy so long?

The door opened slowly, and the man smiled at us. He looked to be about his late forties, maybe fifties. He had a salt and pepper head of hair, and was wearing a dorky looking Hawaiian shirt with jeans. I eyed him in distaste, not even bothering to disguise the fact that I didn't want to be there.

My mother smiled at him, introduced us, and left. She probably had better things to do then protect her only daughter from crazy shrinks.

Edwin Ferguson, 'Eddie', led me to his kitchen, where a plate of cookies was waiting. I eyed it carefully and decided not to take one. All the heroines in my books had always regretted eating food in enemy territory; it was often poisoned, or drugged.

Eddie, seeing that I wasn't going to eat, led me into his living room. I sat down on the couch while he sat on a chair. He pulled out a clipboard from a drawer in the coffee table and started jotting down notes.

"So, Emily," he paused, looking up at me carefully, as if I were a rare specimen that he was studying. "Tell me about yourself."

I scrunched my face up in shock, thinking about his question.

"I like to read," I told him. "I don't like onions. And I hate the colors orange and green put together."

Eddie jotted something else down, and then peered at me again. "You want to be remembered as the girl who doesn't like orange and green?"

"Well no, but-"

"That's not who you are. Those help make up what you are, certainly, but in the end they are just likes and dislikes."

"Okaaaaay…"

"So, tell me again, who are you?"

"I'm Emily Richler."

"No. Tell me what type of Emily you are."

"One who hates riddles?"

"Okay then," Eddie jotted something else down. "Let's move on. Tell me about your family."

"Mom's a snob who likes shopping and flaunting her money. Dad's a boring old guy who likes to make corny jokes."

"Those aren't very flattering descriptions."

"But yet very accurate," I shot back. "I still love them, so what does it matter?"

Eddie jotted more stuff on his clipboard. "Tell me about your friends."

"Julia is cute, kinda bouncy and hyper. She gets bored easily, especially where she's living now." I paused. "Rob is understanding. And forgiving. And fun."

"Is Rob your boyfriend?"

"Is that any of your business?"

Eddie put down his clipboard. "You know, I could help you. But only if you want to be helped."

"I was forced into this." I pointed out.

"Can you at least try?"

I sighed. Well, at least the shrink was trying to be nice. "Fine."

"Any other friends?"

"Just Jeff…" I closed my eyes briefly. "But we aren't friends anymore."

"Why?"

"Why?" I glared at Eddie. "He attacked me in the washroom, that's why! Not that it was really his fault."

"Why wasn't it his fault?"

"Because," I said, annoyed. "It just wasn't."

"Everyone controls their own actions," Eddie pointed out. "Why do you think it isn't his fault?"

"Because he wasn't in control of his actions."

_Shit_

_Did I just say that out loud?_

"What do you mean?"

What the hell. He wouldn't believe it anyways.

"My boyfriend's ghost came back from the dead and is now stuck in Jeff's body."

The thing is, I actually believed it. I felt a burden lift off of my chest as I made this realization. Yes, I did believe Pat was back. And I believed Jeff was right; Pat was stuck in Jeff's body. I believed all of it, although a small part of my mind was still convinced that I was insane.

Eddie stared at me incredulously for a second. I smiled at him sunnily. He now officially thought I was a psycho, which I might be. I didn't really know anymore.

"Why do you think that?" he asked slowly, trying to hide his confusion.

"Because Jeff has been switching back and forth between his regular self, and acting like my overprotective moody boyfriend who died last year," I studied my fingernails. "And Jeff is convinced that Pat has possessed him. Jeff would also never get so mad as to throw me against a wall; he wouldn't even be strong enough to do that."

Eddie put down his clipboard, staring at me strangely. I saw his look and nodded in agreement.

"And I might be crazy," I acknowledged. "But I don't think I am."

Eddie stood up slowly, and began to pace the room. "I know Pat- your boyfriend- died awhile ago…" he said. "Your mother mentioned it had caused some trauma, but I didn't think it would be this bad."

"You think I'm insane."

"No," Eddie gave a strained smile. "Just confused."

I nodded in agreement. "But I don't think it's anything you can help me with," I told him.

"Just the same, I'd like you to attend our second appointment tomorrow." Eddie said. "We'll see then…"

I stood up and shook his hand. "Thank you for trying, Ed."

Eddie's mouth twitched. "You're very welcome. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Bye," I waved, and then walked out his door. I called my mom on my cell phone. Ten minutes later she pulled up to the bench I had sat down on to wait for her, and I got in the car, ready to go home and call Rob.

"How did the appointment go?" she asked, falsely cheerful.

"Fine," I told her. "I figured something out that's been bugging me for awhile."

"That's good," my mom said again. "So it was worth it?"

"I guess."

…………………………………………………………..

Rob greeted me with a hug at school the next day. "Hey baby."

"Rob!" It was good to see him. "How are you?"

"Good," he nuzzled my neck. "How 'bout you?"

_I'm good. You know, I just figured out that my boyfriend's ghost is possessing my best friend's body. Thanks for asking!_

I was tempted to tell him everything, but it was one thing for Eddie to think I was insane and quite another for Rob. So I just smiled and kissed him lightly on the lips. "Fine, thanks."

"So, I was thinking maybe we could hang out after-"

_"Would Emily Richler please come to the main office, Emily Richler, to the main office."_

Rob let go of me in surprise. "Twice in a week!"

"I know, I'm such a rebel," I smiled nervously at him. "Maybe I should go-"

Rob kissed me lightly on my cheek. "See you at lunch."

…………………………………………………………………….

"We have some bad news, Ms Richler."

Man, Vance sure didn't waste time.

"What is it?"

I looked at his troubled face, then at Mr. Quaker's face. And suddenly, I just knew what they were going to say.

"No," I whispered. "How?"

"His lawyer managed to convince the judge into granting him a pardon," Quaker said solemnly. I stared at him blankly.

"How did he manage that?!"

"We're not sure…"

I stood up slowly, mind buzzing in panic. _Oh shit oh shit oh shit oh shit! I gotta get out of here... before he comes after me…_

Of course I had the sense to keep that to myself. Instead, I told them I was going to go back to class.

"Are you sure? We could call your parents-"

"No," I said. "I'll go to class."

"He's not allowed on school property. And if you see him, call us immediately." Mr. Vance passed me a slip of paper with a phone number on it.

I mumbled a thanks and left the office, walking calmly at first, then breaking into a sprint. I dodged around students as I ran, each one of them looking at me as if I'd grown two heads.

…………………………………………………………..

**Author's note:** Hey guys it's been awhile! Here's another sort of filler. I promise the next chapter is better, though it's not 100 done.

Thanks to: raerochella, Bumbledbee, Italiangurlinamessedupworld, UsagiMiyuki, Ihaconch, porkypick, and bloodygirl. Cookies for everyone! Well, I guess they're virtual cookies lol.

-_My spirit's sleeping somewhere cold- Wake Me Up Inside, by Evanescence._


	9. He watches from the corner

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_He watches from the corner… he waits for her to stumble…_

…………………………………….

Eventually I found Rob talking to one of his football friends. I grabbed Rob's wrist and pulled him away from his friend as I ran, dragging him down the hallway.

"What's wrong?" Rob said breathlessly as we came to a stop just by the side entrance to the school. "What's wrong Em?"

I bit my lip, trying to form the words. They wouldn't come. "Let's skip."

"Huh?"

"Let's skip class. Hang out all day," I smiled lightly at him. "Just me and you."

"Uh," Rob looked a little taken aback. "Sure, I guess."

An hour later found us sitting in his backyard. We were sitting under a large tree- the shade was much needed, seeing as how it was so hot. And for once, we weren't kissing. We just say there, side by side, silent. My mind was buzzing with thoughts, stuff that I wanted to tell Rob.

Finally he broke the silence.

"I used to climb this tree when I was little," Rob told me, staring up at the branches. "It's too bad it's such a small tree, or I would climb it right now just to get away from this awkward silence…"

I laughed. "I can't believe your parents let you climb trees!"

"Yeah, well my parents were sort of hippies in their younger years."

I looked up at the tree carefully. "You know that those branches are rotting?" I pointed at the mushrooms. "Those are decomposing them."

"Huh."

We sat in awkward silence for another couple minutes.

"So… why are we skipping again?" Rob asked softly, once again breaking into my thoughts. "Not that I'm complaining. But my marks are dropping in math, so-"

"I wanted to tell you some bad news." I said nervously.

"Come here." He patted his lap. I crawled over and got onto his lap (with a bit of difficulty. Honestly, nothing is ever like the movies). He folded his arms around me and tucked my head under his chin. "What is it?"

"Jeff's out of jail."

For a moment he didn't say anything, and then I felt his arms tighten. "How?"

"Not sure," I murmured. "Something about convincing the judge to let him go…"

"That's illegal," Rob pointed out. If I didn't know any better, I would have said his voice was going frantic. "The judge can't take back his sentence!"

"…" I curled up even tighter in his arms.

"So I guess you won't be leaving my side then," Rob said, making up his mind. "I won't let him come near you."

"He's not allowed on school grounds," I pointed out.

"Just because he's not allowed doesn't mean he won't."

"Rob," I said carefully. "I can't stay by your side all the time. It's unrealistic. And we'd both go crazy."

"No way," Rob murmured, hugging me tighter. "It'll work."

"No it won't," I argued. "Besides, I have a plan."

"Plan?"

"I'm running away."

"What?" he tilted my face up towards him. "No way!"

"Yeah," I told him. "I'm gonna go live with my friend Lisa for awhile."

"Where does Lisa live?"

"About an hour away from here."

"No way!" Rob said again. "You can't go that far! What if Jeff follows you and I'm not there-"

"He won't know I'm going there," I told Rob. "I'll just go. I'll leave my parents a note…"

"What if he finds the note?"

"He won't," I told him.

"Maybe he will."

"He won't!"

We sat in silence, both of us a little pissed off. Then I decided I couldn't stay mad at him. He was arguing was out of concern for me, after all.

"Listen Rob, I'll go away for awhile. I'll come back and visit-"

"You can't stay way out there! What about school?"

"Fuck school."

"I'm coming with you."

"No!" I told him. "I'm going to Lisa's, and her grandparents won't want you there. Especially because you're my boyfriend!"

"I'm coming with you."

I shoved myself out of his arms and stood up. "No, you're not." I turned to leave. "Bye, Rob."

"Wait!" he stood up, glowering. "Come on, Emily! You can't just run away. It's not going to solve anything!"

I turned around and strode towards the gate, but Rob was faster. He grabbed me from behind and swung me around to face him. "Don't go."

"I'm going," I told him. "You can't stop me."

Then he kissed me, passionately. Desperately. I felt his lips bruise mine, and his hands grasp my hips aggressively. I felt myself respond.

"Tell me you don't want to stay with me," Rob whispered, pulling back for a second before kissing me again. He hands ran down and cupped my butt as he attacked my mouth. I felt my stomach do flips as I kissed him back furiously.

"Rob," I whispered as he pulled away for air again. "I can't- I have to go-"

"Don't go," he whispered, kissing my neck down to my collar bone. "Stay with me."

"No," I pushed him away. We were both panting like dogs. "I'll come back. I promise."

Rob hesitated, looking defeated. "Okay."

I kissed him lightly on the lips, then turn around and left his yard, closing the gate without looking at him. I was afraid that if I did, I would change my mind and stay with him after all.

………………………………………………..

"Mmhmm, and how do you feel about that?"

I glared at Eddie evilly. "Can I leave now?"

Eddie checked his watch. "We have fifteen minutes left."

"This isn't helping me." I told him, peeved.

"Just tell me how you would feel if your boyfriend _did_ come back."

I thought about what he said. After all those months- months of heartache and tears, how would I feel if he suddenly came back…

Well, a little creeped out. For sure. A little happy, but honestly-

"I don't want him here."

I held Eddie's sharp look as I listed off my reasons.

"I loved him back then, but not anymore. I've moved on-"

His eyes turned darker,

"The past is in the past."

And darker, until they were almost-

Black.

"I wish he'd go back to-" I stopped mid sentence, suddenly afraid. "Eddie?"

"What if he risked everything for you," Eddie said coolly, standing up slowly. "What if he sold the souls of his family for you? What if he was stuck in hell, for a whole year- and suddenly heard your call, and couldn't resist it? What then?"

Eddie was now standing right in front of me. Though I had the feeling that it wasn't Eddie I was speaking to.

I looked him square in the eye. "Pat, you could have resisted my call. You resisted for a year, didn't you?"

"Yeah, but I finally broke down," he spluttered. "I couldn't get any peace. Day and night, all my fam, you and my friends, all wishing for me to come home. Each one of those wishes rang through my head until I thought my brain was going to explode. Especially your wish-"

He placed his hands on my shoulders. "When you wished over my grave, I couldn't resist. I made a deal with the nearest big shot, and off I was- only-"

He got this faraway look in his eyes. "Only _wrong._ Stuck in _his_ body, the man who had you but didn't want you. It was sickening-"

"Pat," I said softly. "You have to go back."

Pat stared at me for a second. "Fuck no."

"Please," I begged. "There's nothing left for you here…"

"Yes there is," his look made me shiver. "I thought you loved me, Emily."

"Not anymore," I said, softer still.

His grip on my shoulders tightened. "No!"

"You were gone- for a whole year-" I tried to shrug him off, but his grip just tightened. He lifted me right off the couch, so I was standing about an inch away from him.

"You love me Emily,"

"No."

"Yes you do," he kissed me, hard. I felt like I was going to hurl.

"No, I don't!" I yelled. "Get your hands off me!"

Pat reached back his hand as if to slap me, and I winced, slamming my eyes shut. But the expected blow never came. I cracked an eye open to see him smiling.

To be honest, the smiling scared me more.

"Fine then," he whispered. "I'll make you love me."

"Huh?"

"This is your last chance. Do you love me?"

"No!"

"Every time you say that word, someone dies…"

"W-what?"

"Do you love me?"

I didn't say anything.

"Fuck Emily, answer me!"

"I-I can't," I said finally, not looking him in the eyes.

"There's someone else." Pat snarled.

"N-n-" I shook as his grip bruised me. "O-of course not!"

Pat smirked, and I could see his eyes fading back to Eddie's blue. "When I come and find you, you had better come with me. Or the boy gets it."

Then he was gone.

Eddie stared at me, blinking. Hastily he let go of my arms and stepped away.

We stared at each other in silence.

"I'm not crazy," I said, finally.

"No- I suppose not," Eddie stared down at his feet. "Was that-"

"Good ol' Patty? Yep."

"He's a rather- _angry_ youth, isn't he?"

"Did you hear everything he said?"

"Not really," he told me. "I just knew he was there; I could feel his presence take over, and I could vaguely understand which parts of my body were moving, but it was all sort of hazy."

I pointed to myself. "Not crazy."

"No."

We stood in silence for another minute.

"Err… cookie?" Eddie offered, pointing at the plate.

I fell onto the couch and laugh and laughed and laughed until I cried.

……………………………………………

Hey guys I'm going away for the weekend and I only have half a chapter written up AND I'm taking on a SECOND job (as if I need another one…) so an update may take awhile, like a week. But the next chappy is good I promise! So keep reading!

Thanks to: Italiangurlinamessedupworld, porkypick, raerochella, and LaLaFaery

Wow, definitely less reviewers this time  please review! I'll give you virtual cookies!

-_He watches from the corner—Club thing, by Yoav_


	10. With just a look

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………………………………………………..

_With just a look…_

………………………………………………………

"What are you reading?"

I covered the page with my hand and turned to Lisa. "Nothing… just a book my shrink wants me to read."

Which was one hundred percent true.

After the strange Pat-possessing-Eddie thing, we went to the library to find some books about ghost possession.

I smiled at Lisa from across the room and went back to reading.

"…we must consider that the bindings between people and ghosts might be strong, and that the exorcised ghosts may come back and possess these people again. The patient must work at not letting the ghost back in."

I paused, thinking. The book said that an emotional binding would bring ghosts back. But if that was true, why hadn't Pat possessed _me_? I was the one who called him back.

So far, in this book, I'd learned that fear was what fed a ghost. If that was true, then maybe… maybe Pat had possessed Jeff because Jeff had been afraid…

Briefly I recalled the day when Jeff had found me at the Cemetery…

_"Emily!" the voice snapped. "Pat isn't here!"_

_I curled up into a tighter ball. "Go away."_

_The voice was furious now. "Emily, Pat is dead!"_

He must have been really worried… and afraid. I had disappeared on Pat's death day, after all. Maybe he'd thought I'd try something stupid, like slit my wrists-

Jeff's fear for me must have attracted Pat.

But where was Pat now? Was he still with Jeff? Or someone else?

I read the page again, and then flipped to the chapter on exorcism. There was only one page, briefly describing that an exorcism should be preformed by a priest. He should have holy water and the bible, blah, blah. Something about talking the ghost down, till it shrunk in size and put into a bottle, where it was then thrown into a river, or buried underground.

Obviously that wouldn't be happening. This book didn't know that I would be locked up if I talked to a priest about my dead boyfriend's ghost. Plus, the whole shrinking into a bottle business? What a load of crap.

The next option talked about fulfilling a purpose. The ghost needed something to be accomplished, whether it knows what it is or not. Once that thing is accomplished, it will go away.

I slammed it shut and chucked it under my pull out bed. What Pat wanted I couldn't give him, that's for sure.

So what was left to do? I could stay at Lisa's forever if I wanted to. But how long would it take for Pat to find me? Would he hurt Lisa and her family?

I didn't want him to catch me, but I didn't want anyone else hurt either. Maybe Pat would get tired of chasing me and leave.

Could he leave if he wanted to? Hmm. more questions that needed answers…

All I knew was that somehow Pat had gotten strong enough to possess other people's bodies. I wonder if the fear in the jail had fed him?

"Emily? It's time for dinner."

I glanced up at Lisa. "'Kay."

Later Lisa and I snuggled into our beds for a good nights sleep.

"So, why are you here?" she asked. "Not that I'm complaining, or anything, but…"

"I told you, Pa- I mean Jeff got out of jail."

"So?"

I rolled restlessly onto my side, staring out at the slightly lit up window. "I'm afraid he'll come after me."

"No way," Lisa said. "He wouldn't."

"He would."

We lay in silence for a few moments.

"What if he comes out here?"

My stomach sunk to the floor. "I'm really hoping he won't…"

Lisa sighed. "I guess I'll have to kick his ass if he does."

I smiled at the image. "You can beat him with your grandfather's rocking chair."

"Or grandma's spatula."

"I bet your grampa would help."

"He'd jump on him, yelling like a banshee while beating him with his cane!"

We burst into giggles; it felt good to laugh again.

Unfortunately, the laughter died too soon. Maybe it was because the thought of Lisa trying to take Pat on was terrifying…

Lisa's breathing eased into the slow pattern of sleep, and gradually I fell asleep…

"_Emily,"_

I jolted awake and panic fluttered through my chest, making it hard for me to breathe. I gasped as a hand clapped over my mouth, while the other hand pinned my arms above my head.

"Don't fight me, Emily."

"MMPH!"

Pat dragged me out of bed and over to the window. He pressed my cheek against the glass, and told me to look outside.

I looked out at the yard. And there, thrashing in her bonds, was Lisa. She was fairly close to the pond- if she rolled any closer she'd fall in. And I knew for a fact that that pond was very, very deep.

"See that!" he whispered in my ear. "If I want, I can make your friend roll into that pond."

"Mmph," I muttered quietly, all attempts of struggle now gone.

"Now I want you to come with me, without a fuss."

"MMmm!" I shook my head furiously.

"You come, or the girl dies!" his breath tickled my skin as he whispered his poison into my ear. He shook me until my teeth rattled. "I will _kill_ her, do you understand?!"

I did understand. And I believed he would do it, too, if given half a chance.

I didn't want to go with him.

But I didn't want Lisa to- to-

I nodded my head slowly, and he wrapped his arms around me, hugging me briefly. "Good girl."

I felt tears prickle in my eyes as I was dragged out the window and plopped onto the grass. Somehow he managed to keep a firm hand around my mouth and arms the whole time.

Lisa saw me from the pond and started to thrash harder. I shook my head- _please don't struggle-_ and I was sure she read the panic in my eyes because she ceased to move a second later, every inch of her body screaming disbelief.

"Be good." Pat whispered against my hair. "Don't run, or scream."

He let go of me for a second so he could close the window. I felt panic blind my mind and I took off like a shot, running to Lisa, crying all the while.

A wordless wail rose from my throat and spilled out into the night. It pooled out of me before I could stop it- and since it had leaked out anyway, I let myself yell full force. Maybe Lisa's grandparents would hear me and call the police…

I fell on my knees at Lisa's side and started to untie her bonds. Behind me, the sound of Pat's running steps and curses flowed quietly over the terrain.

I was thrown back away from her and Pat sat down on my chest, making it hard to breathe. He pinned my arms over my head, as he spat in my face.

"You brought this on yourself," he spat, his face turning more and more red by the minute. His anger was taking him over. "You woke everyone up! If Lisa tells them, they'll hunt me down and put me back in jail!"

"Don't kill her!" I shrieked.

"I have to." He spat. His whole body stiffened, and then he completely collapsed onto me, his eyes rolling back into his head.

"Lisa!" I choked out.

Nearby, Lisa was thrashing about by the pond, trying to get out of her bonds. Gradually the movements died down, and her head turned slowly towards me, eyes eerily wide.

Jeff started to life over me, shifting slightly. "Emily? Oh God, Em- What-"

I wanted to look at Jeff- I was sure it was Jeff now- but I just couldn't. My eyes were fixated on Lisa's, who was staring back at me cruelly.

Her eyes were black.

"You brought this on yourself," Lisa/Pat said, mirroring the words he had said earlier. Then Pat rolled Lisa into the pond.

I screamed and started to thrash under Jeff. "No-no- Jeff- let me up-"

But Jeff wasn't Jeff anymore- Jeff was back to being Pat. I could tell as soon as his eyes turned black.

The lights flickered on in the house, casting the yard into relief. Pat panicked, then picked me up and threw me over his shoulder. My eyes flickered towards the pond, which was in turmoil, and my scream started again.

Pat cursed me as he ran, and I cursed him, yelling, screaming. As we left the yard, I saw the pond surface grow still...

…………………………………..

Disclaimer: the quote from the book further up is from the book _Possessed by Ghost; Exorcism in the 21st Century. _By_ Wandfa Pratnicka. _Please note that the rest of the information regarding Emily's book is NOT from Pratnicka's book; it is made up from my imagination.

Thanks to raerochella, Italiangurlinamessedupworld, LaLaFeary, Bumbledbee, porkypick, Ihaconch, xxxmusic is lifexxx and bloodygirl!! Love you guys very much!

Till next time, _teardrop_

-_With just a look- Miss Murder, by AFI_


	11. All I ever wanted

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…………………………………………

_All I ever wanted…_

………………………………………..

I felt the sun scorch my eyelids, startling me from my solid sleep. A slight breeze wafted over my cheek, and I flinched.

That was when I felt the ropes binding my hands and feet, and it all flooded back.

I bit my lip to keep from whimpering out loud. Lisa- my best friend-

I couldn't believe it.

I cracked my eyes open slightly, looking for him. There- washing his hands in the creek, no more than ten steps away. I opened my eyes a bit and looked at my surroundings. We were in a forest- not even in a nice clear spot, but in the middle of a tangled, muddled, pilly-nilly freakin' _forest._ Just great.

Probably one of those never ending ones too.

Well, at least I had some sort of chance of escaping. Unlike Lisa.

I felt my throat itch, and tears burn. Lisa-

_No! Get a hold of yourself, Emily. You need to escape!_

The other half of my mind wanted to just give up and cry myself to sleep…

"Good morning."

I felt my breath hitch as Pat stood up and walked over to me. I sat up but refused to look at his face- my eyes stayed glued to the ground, where he wouldn't be able to read the fear in them.

Because, let's face it, he could kill me off whenever he wanted to.

A strong hand clutched my chin and titled it upwards, forcing me to look into his black eyes. Black, the color of night. Of dark. Of death.

"I said, _good morning_."

"Good morning," I said through gritted teeth.

"Good," he let go of my chin and sat down beside me. "Are you feeling better?"

I laughed out loud, only it wasn't a nice laugh. "Oh yeah, I'm feeling just _fine."_

Pat frowned. "I didn't want to hurt your friend. But she would have told everyone-"

"So you had to _kill _her?!" I felt the tears I'd tried to hold back leak down my cheek as I stared at the ground. "My best friend- de-de-"

I couldn't say it, just burst into tears.

"I didn't kill her," Pat insisted, his voice soft, menacing. "_You_ woke everyone up, so-"

"Oh, it's my fault now, is it?" I spat, still crying. "You bastard. You sick fucking _bastard!"_

Abruptly I was thrown onto my back, his body pinning down mine. He placed an arm on either side of my head, and his face came very close to mine. Inches away, in fact. He stared intently into my eyes as I gasped for air.

He brought his mouth down to mine and whispered, feather light, on my lips,

"Don't."

That was all he said, but the warning was there. The warning of what he could do. We were in the middle of a god damn forest- no one for miles around. No way for anyone to help. No way for anyone to stop Pat if his temper got the best of him.

I remembered how his temper used to flare all the time, but otherwise he'd been a very sweet boy. Very nice to me, at least. He had certainly never hurt me physically. What happened?

"Why are you so violent?" I whispered, staring into his eyes. "What happened to the you…"

He froze, his mouth inches away from my neck.

"Nothing." He said harshly. "Nothing you will ever know."

Then his lips attacked my neck, biting and sucking. I winced in pain as he broke skin, and a thin stream of blood rained down my neck.

I almost puked when I felt the rough edge of his tong licking up the trail.

"S-stop-"

"Emily," he sighed, kissing me lightly on the lips. The taste of my own blood lingered as he pulled away. "If I untie you, will you run?"

I stared at him for a second, aghast. The taste of my own blood made me feel sick to my stomach. I felt my disgust fade into the back of my mind- just another sick event in my stupid life.

I thought about his question, then shrugged. "Probably."

Pat sighed. "Well, we have to get moving."

"Why?"

"Police are searching the forests," Pat said, starting to untie my feet. "They think that you've been kidnapped."

"Which is absolutely true." I pointed out as the bonds on my feet came undone. Pat pulled me to my feet, his grip gentle but restraining.

"We have to go," he positioned himself behind me, his hands grasping the rope that bound my hands. "Walk."

I didn't feel like walking, I felt like crying and sleeping. Too bad I didn't have much of a choice.

I plodded along at a steady pace, picking my way over rocks and fallen logs, and under low branches. Once or twice Pat had to pull me to the left or right to avoid stuff. A few times I tripped, but he was always there, protecting me from harm.

My protector and captor. How disgustingly romantic.

"We'll stop here."

I plopped down on the ground under a large willow tree. The long sweeping branches blocked out the forest, and kept us from view as well. It would have felt safe if I wasn't sharing the space with a murderer.

Pat kneeled down in front of me and started to tie my legs back up. His head seemed to droop a bit.

I lay right down on the grass, ready to pass out. But Pat didn't like that- his hands left the loose rope and traveled up my legs and onto my stomach, tracing lazy circles.

His lips inevitably found mine, and although I tried not to respond, it was almost impossible.

"Pat," I turned my head away, shivering. "No."

"Why not?" he asked. "Why can't a kiss the girl I love?"

"Pat-"

"Why can't I?"

"Because," I said flatly. I thought of the pond surface going so still... "I don't want to."

He traced another circle on my slightly exposed stomach, and I shivered. Vaguely I realized I was still dressed in my pajamas- slightly tattered ones at that. But in the scheme of things, did it really even matter?

"That's not what your body says." He said, grinning a cat-like smile.

He kissed my neck, starting from my collar bone and up to behind my ear. His lips passed over the hickey he'd mauled into my neck earlier. The sensitive touch made me gasp.

"Pat," I said sternly. "No."

He leaned away from me, his black eyes turning hard. "Emily, you're mine. I'll kiss you if I bloody well want to."

"Oh, you getting all manly now? What's with this possessive shit, Pat?"

"You're mine," he hissed. "No one can take you away from me."

He completely enveloped me in his arms and kissed me, smothering me. I struggled underneath him, pushing this way and that.

"No, Pat-" I said frantically as his hands ran over me. "You can't-"

He paused what he was doing and looked into my eyes, seeing the fear there. "I won't."

I felt relief burn in my eyes, tears threatening to drop. "Then why did you kidnap me? Are you going to kill me?"

"_No_! How could you even think that?!" He exclaimed.

"Lisa…"

I felt the tears start up again.

"So why am I here?" I choked out, trying to hold the tears in. I'd cry later when the darkness hid me. When Pat couldn't see.

A brief look of guilt flashed across his face. "Well, I need your help with something…"

…………………………………

Sorry it's been so long! I clean forgot about this story… I'm working two jobs so things are kind of crazy… I have the next chappy half done, but I think it's safe to say I'll have it up sometime with in the next two weeks…

Thanks to: xxxmusic is lifexxx, Italiangurlinamessedupworld, Bumbledbee, LaLaFaery, porkypick, EllaofDragonia and rearochella. LOVE YOU GUYS!! All reviews make me very very happy and motivated, so if you have anything to say at all, let me know.

Here's a good question: Who's better, Pat or Rob? Let me know!

-_All I ever wanted- by Depeche Mode_


	12. Wild and Free

…………………………………

………………………………….

_Wild and free…_

……………………………………

I felt anger boil in me, my face flushing red. Tears dripped down my face.

"You want me to help you after you _murdered_ my best friend?!"

"Uh," Pat frowned. "It's not that I need your help. I just need you to cooperate."

_"No."_

Pat looked taken aback. "You haven't even heard what it is yet!"

"I don't give a shit. I'm not doing it."

Pat sat up and ran a hand through his hair. "Just hear me out-"

"No."

"_Emily."_ He was getting mad now, but I didn't care. I rolled away from him.

"No!"

He jumped up to standing, so he was towering over me. I cringed away from him, pressing my cheek into the hard ground, eyes slammed shut. "Emily," he hissed. "You don't have a choice!"

"Fu-"

"Am I interrupting something?" A new, gravel-like voice echoed to the left. Both of us turned towards the newcomer, my expression hopeful, his angry.

"EDDIE!" I shrieked, almost giddy with relief. "Oh my god!"

Eddie turned his head slowly towards me, and caught my eye.

I gasped, and immediately felt the hope of rescue leave me.

His eyes glowed red.

"I'm not this Eddie you speak of." He hissed, looking away. I stared at his turned face, trying to process what I had just seen. Then I came to a quick conclusion:

Eddie was possessed.

Probably a ghost, just like Pat- maybe even friends with Pat. He wouldn't help me. No one could help me- _I_ couldn't even help myself.

"Patrick," Eddie said briskly. "I need to speak with you. Alone."

Eddie's red eyes lingered on me, making me flinch. Then he spun on his heal and moved out of sight.

Pat kneeled beside me and ran his hand down my cheek, wiping the dirt away. "Don't be scared. He won't hurt you."

I looked up at him. "Go talk to him so he can leave," I muttered. "He gives me the creeps."

Pat's mouth tilted in a semblance of a smile, but his heart wasn't in it. He placed a gentle kiss on my lips, and I was reminded of the past, when he used to kiss me like that all the time...

In the distance, we heard Eddie clear his throat impatiently. Pat pulled back, turned on his heel and left.

I sat up slowly, straining to hear their words. Nothing but deep murmurs could be heard- deep, angry murmurs. I started twisting my hands, trying to untie them.

I heard a thump- a loud, obnoxious noise that made me stiffen.

I looked out where Pat had disappeared, wondering what was going on.

I wiggled my feet easily out of the loose knots Pat had started to tie. I struggled to my knees, then onto my feet. I heard footsteps crunch on the hard ground, coming closer, and closer…

I darted behind the oak tree and held my breath, listening as the footsteps circled slowly around the tree. He was taking his time.

Abruptly Eddie rounded the tree and grabbed my arm, keeping me from bolting.

"Emily," he smiled, his red eyes flashing. It wasn't a nice smile. "I'm leaving now."

"Where's Pat?"

"He's fine." His hand reached towards my face, and I flinched away. His hand paused, and then descended onto the curve of my neck, fingers pressed lightly against my pulse.

"Your spirit is strong," he murmured, his cold fingers making me shudder. My hands twitched agitatedly- if only I could get the rope off!

"What do you want?" I snapped.

"It's not a question of what I want," he smiled wickedly. "It's what I will _have_."

His arms circled around me, and I pulled back, slamming into the hard bark of the tree. His fingers, ever light and cold, grasped my hands.

I felt my heart stop with fear. Where was Pat- where was he when I actually needed him?!

His fingers fumbled with the rope, and it abruptly came off, dropping to the ground.

I stared back at him, shock and surprise on my face.

"Go," Eddie said, red eyes caressing my face. "Run as fast as you can- and whatever you do, don't let him catch you. He _will_ kill you."

I paused, staring up at him, eyes wide.

"Believe me," he whispered, his eyes burning into mine. "Go."

I ran, quick and light, jumping over logs and ducking under branches. I felt my breathing hitch as I ran, remembering his warning. I didn't know who this stranger was, but I didn't really care. He had offered me a chance of escape, and I was going to use it.

………………………………

I leaned my head back against the tree, physically and mentally exhausted. I knew I should have kept running, but I just couldn't. I rubbed my wrists absent mindedly, feeling the cuts and bruises where the ropes had cut into me.

I sighed, the soft breath fluttering my hair out of my face.

My stomach gurgled, angry.

"Shut up," I told it, irritated. I wasn't one of those kids who was all forest savvy and could figure out what was edible and what wasn't. So my stomach would just have to stop whining and suck it up.

Unfortunately, the rest of my body was complaining too.

Beside me a bush stirred, and suddenly a beast leaped out at me.

"AHHHHHHHHHH!"

I shrieked loudly and threw myself sideways, rolling over sharp twigs and rocks, and covered my head with my sore arms.

After a minute of silence, I looked up.

A small squirrel was observing me from where it was sitting, it's head tilted slightly sideways.

I burst out laughing, and the poor thing took off. I laughed so hard my sides ached. I laughed so hard that I started to cry.

I cried so hard that I fell asleep, right there, on the cold ground.

………………………………………………

_A deer runs- running so fast, it's almost a blur. Through the trees, over rocks, under branches. It runs endlessly, never letting up for one second. Fear fuels it, rules it, tells it to run. _

_But what's this? Behind the deer- way back, but running just as quickly, if not quicker than the deer- is a shadowed figure. A man._

_And as he comes closer, the most important detail comes into view. He's carrying a bow and arrow._

("Run- run- _run!_")

_The deer, exhausted, pauses to take a drink at a stream. The man does not stop. He never gets tired. He never stops until he gets what he wants._

_He is a hunter, the strongest of his kind. _

_Nothing can stop him._

("RUN GODDAMMIT! YOU STUPID DEER!")

_But the deer keeps drinking, and lies down to sleep._

_And the man runs closer, until he is just behind the deer._

_He sees the deer._

_He creeps forward._

_He readies his bow._

"I hate Pat," I murmured, tears dripping down my face. "I fucking _hate_ him."

…………………………………………

**AUTHORS NOTE!**

Ah yes, more angst! How wonderful!

To tell everyone the truth, I've been very down about this story lately. I've decided that I won't keep writing this story unless I get 20 reviews in total for this chapter. However, I might start a new story in the meantime.

Thank you to everyone who has reviewed, and I really appreciate your support: Bumbledbee, Itlaiangurlinamessedupworld, raerochella, LaLaFeary and porkypick.

See you after 20 reviews,

Teardrop

-_Wild and free- Runnin' Wild, by Airborne_


	13. Careful what you wish for

………………………………

………………………………

_Careful what you wish for…_

…………………………………

It was around the third day when I saw the squirrel again.

Now I wasn't sure that it was the same squirrel- the silly things all looked the same- but it acted much the same way as the first squirrel.

As in, it scared the shit out of me. _Again._

Only this time, it didn't run away. It sat there on the ground, its furry head tilted to one side, studying me in silence.

I glared back at it evilly and even tried to scare it away, but it wouldn't leave.

So, I cursed it one last time and took off at a fast walk, hoping to lose the thing somewhere in the forest. I was convinced that the squirrel was bad luck.

For awhile it didn't seem to be following me, so I relaxed. Eventually I found a spot to rest in for the night, a small patch of grass overshadowed by a pretty big rock. I hoped that it would shelter me from the wind a bit, but I wasn't too worried. It wasn't that cold out.

I lay down on the relatively soft ground, only to start in surprise.

There was the squirrel, standing on the big rock, watching me solemnly.

I scowled at it and flipped around, facing the other way.

_Stupid squirrel._

_Stupid life._

On the fourth day, I was so hungry that I was tempted to catch the squirrel and eat it. Raw. (Think hardcore Flinstones, bone through the hair and all.)

But somehow I couldn't bring myself to do it.

The thing is, I started talking to it. Don't look at me like that! I wasn't crazy; I was very lonely, all alone in that big forest. The squirrel was my companion. I told him my life story as he perched on my shoulder. The silly thing liked to sit there, and sometimes he licked my cheek- an oddly comforting gesture coming from a squirrel.

Sometimes I'd catch the squirrel pacing, or crying.

It was all so strange, but I didn't care. All I cared was that I wasn't alone.

On the fifth day, my stomach hurt from hunger so bad that I started not caring if the berries I ate were poisonous or not.

Which was just plain stupid, but hey, I never claimed to be smart.

"I'm so stupid," I whispered to myself as I finished vomiting. I lay on my side, clutching my stomach. I could barely breathe.

"It hurts. It hurts. Fuck it hurts.."

My squirrel friend pressed his nose to my cheek, then on my hand. I turned my head and watched the squirrel. He surveyed me solemnly for a second, then sat back on his feet, extended a paw to the ground, and started to sketch something in the dirt.

No joke.

He drew a compass rose, labeled the ends, and circled the North arrow, all with slow, even movements.

I stared at the drawing, then back at the squirrel.

"I'm going insane," I croaked, clutching my head now.

The squirrel shook its head.

I sighed loudly, staring into the squirrels dark eyes. "You want me to go North?"

The squirrel nodded, and I swear it winked at me.

I got up slowly, still clutching my stomach, and placed the squirrel gently on my shoulder.

I figured that if there was such thing as ghosts, then there could be intelligent squirrels as well.

Suck on that, science.

……………………………………………

After a full day of walking, we made it to the edge of the forest.

As the trees started to thin out, I congratulated my squirrel friend.

"You were right!" I told him, smiling. He pressed his cold nose on the underside of my ear, which made me laugh.

"Thank you!" I told him, nudging him back. Then we walked forward, and right into-

My town.

_My_ town!

I had walked all the way from Lisa's house to my town!

I laughed again, almost shouting with relief.

The squirrel chattered loudly and pointed to the left, towards a road that led further into town. I laughed at the excited gesture and shook my head. "I'm going home."

I turned away from the squirrel, which had hopped off my shoulder, and walked towards the other road. I knew that I could find a bus stop on that busy street, and take a bus home.

The squirrel stayed where he was, chattering angrily.

"I'm going home," I told him again. "You can come with me. Our yard is full of nice trees you could live in."

That only seemed to make him angrier. He yowled loudly at me, making me jump.

A couple across the street were giving me a weird look. The girl whispered something in the guy's ear, and they took off down the street, the guy pulling out a cell phone.

Well, I was talking to a squirrel. That would freak anybody out, I guess.

I started to giggle at how weird it must look, but the laugh made my stomach hurt, so I stopped.

The squirrel seemed to be screaming at me now. I kneeled down and held my hand out. "Come on buddy, let's go home."

I swear the squirrel stomped his foot. Then he took off, bolting down the smaller street which he had pointed to. I watched him go sorrowfully as my heart ached. I recognized the feeling- it was the feeling of loss, of regret…

My happy high of relief died down to nothing. I frowned and sat down on the sidewalk, waiting for the feeling to go away. It was a squirrel, for Christ's sake, a wild animal.

So why did I feel like he was a friend?

I remembered Lisa then, and my heart pulled even more. I felt like I was being pulled into a million pieces, and I would never be able to find all those pieces and put myself back together again.

Maybe I should have stayed in the forest. Died in the forest, even. It was almost better than remembering.

Almost.

Suddenly, I heard the sound of sirens coming closer, and watched curiously as two cop cars zoomed around the corner.

The cars pulled up to me, and one officer stepped out of the car.

I smiled and was about to wave, when he leveled a gun to my head, while the other officer jogged around the side of me, grabbed my hands, and cuffed them.

"You are under arrest for aiding in the murder of Lisa White, and attempting to murder Robert Wesley. You have the right to remain silent. Anything you say can and will be used against you in the court of law…"

……………………………

_The caretaker continued his walk to the gate. He hadn't seen anyone at all- no surprise, at this time of night._

_He heard the chatter of a squirrel on his right; squirrels were always out and about, making nests around- or even worse, under- the tombstones. _

_Grumbling, the caretaker waddled towards the chattering, trying to scare the squirrel off._

_The chattering stopped._

_Suddenly, a boy stood up, his silhouette blocking one of the tombstones._

_"Can I help you?" The caretaker asked rudely._

_The boy turned slowly towards him, his blonde hair and blue eyes shone in the bright beam of the caretaker's flashlight._

_"Hi," the boy said, a smirk crossing his mouth._

_The caretaker frowned at him. _He looks awfully familiar…

_"What are you doing here? The gates closed half an hour ago!"_

_"Sorry," the boy paused. "I was just visiting my gr- my _friend's_ grave."_

_"Get you gone," the caretaker growled. The boy hesitated, and then took off._

_The caretaker looked at the tombstone, checking for damage. It read:_

"Patrick Bell, born 1989, died 2007.

"The good die young."

_Then he noticed that the soil in front of the grave looked freshly patted down, which couldn't be possible. It was an older stone._

_The caretaker shrugged and continued his slow walk. Kids were always playing pranks like that. _

_"Kid's don't have any respect for their elders these days," he growled out loud, marching towards the gate._

_Only the skeletons heard him…_

………………………………….

**AUTHORS NOTE:** HELLO EVERYONE! Yes, I decided to update. I received a total of 12 reviews, which is good enough for me. So, who do you think the squirrel is? Haha. Okay, so I want to thank everyone who reviewed, because you guys are awesome and deserve to be thanked-

Thanks to: LaLaFaery, Amarantis, Italiangurlinamessedupworld, robislove (haha good one), raerochella, Ihaconch, x-GlitterEyes-x, Bumbeldbee, d3pth, bloodygrl, and Midnightmare-the original. LOVE YOU GUYS! Thank you so much for reviewing! I love hearing from my readers- even if it just says 'hey, keep writing!'

Thank you so much!

-_Careful what you wish for- When I grow up, by the Pussycat Dolls_


	14. I want to wake up where you are

……………………………………

……………………………………

_I want to wake up where you are…_

…………………………………..

"Oh, sweet pea!"

I looked up from my seat on the uncomfortable bed, only to find my mother and father peering in at me from outside my cage.

"Mom!" I exclaimed, jumping to my feet. I stumbled towards my parents, hands reaching out to grip the bars that separated me from my family.

"Mom! Dad!" I looked at both their faces wildly. "Rob?"

"Robert is fine, honey," my mom said gently. "He's in the hospital right now, recovering."

"Oh my god," I half sobbed. "Please- I have to go see him- did you come to get me out?"

"No," my dad said, not looking me in the eye. "We're just visiting."

"Oh," I said. I was disappointed, but not really surprised. What could my parents possibly do? All the evidence was against me… or at least that's what I had overheard from the officers.

Which is impossible, because I didn't do it.

Everyone was saying that I did it; it was me who murdered Lisa, my best friend. It was me who tried to kill Rob. Me, me, me, fuck me-

_I didn't do it!_

"I didn't do anything!"

My mom studied her nails, a frown etching her pretty face. "Don't say any more," she advised. "Your lawyer will be in later tonight. You can figure out what to tell the judge then."

"Huh?" I looked at them both. "You do believe me, right?"

There was a pause of uneasy silence.

"Of course," my dad said. "But you shouldn't tell us the story- not with so many people who could overhear and twist what you say. Tell your lawyer tonight; he can help you better than we can, sweetie."

"Okay," I said thickly, blinking away my tears.

"We have to leave now," mom smiled at me warmly. "We love you."

"I love you to."

I watched as they walked down the hall and left, listening to their footsteps echo around my prison…

………………………………..

"Hi there," the court lawyer greeted his customer warmly.

"Hello," the man greeted, his eyes hidden behind a pair of sunglasses. Slightly odd, it's true, but the lawyer was used to having odd clients.

Other than the sunglasses the man looked perfectly normal. He was sort of medium height- for a man- and, judging by his salt and pepper hair, he was middle aged.

The lawyer looked down at his paper. "It says here that you're a psychiatrist of some kind, and that you're taking one of your patients to court."

"That's right," the man said.

"May I know why?"

"No."

"Sir, I'm here to help. Nothing you say goes outside that door behind you."

"Don't worry," the man said. "You will help me- in a different way."

Then his eyes rolled back into his head and he collapsed into a heap on the floor.

Meanwhile, the lawyer jerked upright, his whole body tensed. Gradually, his eyes-once a pale grey-darkened, swirling into blood red. As his eyes changed, he started to relax, flexing his arms and legs.

He grabbed the sunglasses from Eddie's limp body, placing them on his face. He then thumped Eddie over the head with a paperweight; he had to make sure that Eddie wouldn't wake up right then and cause a scene.

Then he dragged Eddie down the hall by the shoulders, and dumped him into the elevator. Once they got to the ground floor, the lawyer asked the front desk to call a cab for the man, and send him home. After all, he _was_ gradually waking up.

The lawyer- or should I say, _possessed_ lawyer- had no use for Eddie; the only reason he had possessed Eddie in the first place was because Eddie's soul had been recently possessed, and his mind had been open to the whole process.

He had certainly not chosen Eddie for his looks.

He shuffled back to his office to gather his papers. He had a date with the court over a certain girl tomorrow, and he had to prepare.

He was convinced that he would win.

But, he decided, better safe than sorry.

…………………………………………

Pat looked up towards the sky.

The sun was setting now, a dark mixture of red and purple mixed with beams of bright yellow sunlight. He clutched the newspaper in his hand tighter, the ink staining his fingertips.

He flexed his muscles, enjoying the comfortable feeling of being back in his own body, rather than the small cramped body of the squirrel.

That Demon- who had come to remind Pat that time was running out- had imprisoned him in the small furry body, and then taken off. The Demon had also set Emily free, proving that the Demon was ready to fight dirty in order to win…

You see, Pat had made a deal with the Demon, a deal that he was not permitted to speak about to anyone other than the Demon himself. Which was why Pat couldn't just tell Emily everything.

He scratched his goatee thoughtfully- What had he told her again? Ah, yes. He had told her that he had sold the souls of his family for her. Which was, in fact, entirely untrue.

His mind replayed a flashback in his head, clouding his thoughts and mind:

……………………….

_Pat fell to his knees on the ground, snarling in pain, hands firmly clamped over his ears._

_"Fuck, fuck, fuck- SHUT UP!"_

_The voice resounded again, that voice- so tortured, so miserable, so loud and insistent… more insistent than ever before-_

_**"I still love you- please come back… come back… come back…"**_

___Pat screamed in pain and misery, scratching at the dirt furiously, wishing he could dig a whole straight to his past life and hold his Emily- his beautiful Emily- in his arms. He would cuddle her, and kiss her- anything to keep her from the misery she was experiencing at that moment…_

_"Need some help?"_

_Pat looked up, startled. A smaller Demon stared at him curiously, tapping his chin._

_Demons never acknowledged souls unless they wanted something from them; this made Pat very weary. _

_**"…please…"**__ the voice resounded again, bouncing around in his head, causing his mind to blank. He couldn't think. He couldn't think of the consequences-_

_"I need to go back."_

_The Demon nodded sagely. "Unfinished business?"_

_"Yeah."_

_"I'll make you a deal," the Demon told him. "I'll let you go back to the earth for a whole moon cycle. During that time you have to finish up whatever needs to get done. If you can't, then I will collect my dues- the soul of a loved one."_

_**"…come back…"**_

___"Yes," Pat gasped, clutching his head again. "Send me back!"_

_So, with a wave of his hand, the demon sent him back._

…………..

Pat shook his head sadly. When he had first landed on Earth, he hadn't entirely figured out what his unfinished business was. But gradually, he had realized that he craved something…deep down… and that craving had to be fulfilled.

Pat remembered, vaguely, how hard it was to adapt to Jeff's body at first. Pat had been so weak from his journey- he could hardly keep himself in Jeff's body. And only when he had seen, heard or touched something familiar had he been able to take over Jeff's body and use it as if it were his own.

Gradually he'd gained strength, until he could completely control Jeff's body all the time.

He learned how to switch bodies; switching into that judges body had been too easy. He, as the judge, had written Jeff's pardon, which was how Jeff had gotten out of jail.

So simple.

When he had possessed Lisa-

Pat frowned slightly.

He had a feeling that if he had stayed in her body till her last breath, he would have died with her.

Death- such a horrible word for the living. Such a realistic word for him, a lost soul, with only two days left to live.

Two days left till the full moon…

_Unfinished business…_

He glanced down at the crumpled newspaper. On the front was Emily, his Emily-

The article said she was to have her trial tomorrow. A trial for murder.

Pat's hands shook visibly at the thought of his little Emily, sitting all alone in her cell. Part of the sentences against Emily was his fault. And he would try to help her, in any way he could.

_Emily…_

_In her cell, all alone…_

_If only you would love me again…_

…………………………………………………..

Thanks to:x-Glittereyes-x, raerochella, Italiangurlinamessedupworld, Amarantis, Raenad, hotchocolate7903, AubriannaKnight, Agony of the Heart, and d3pth. LOVE YOU GUYS! I'm sorry this update took so long… But I had very little inspiration for a long time… and then I watched phantom of the opera, (LOVE!) and now my writing/dancing/anything artistic is in Hyper Mode. Weird, huh.

-_I want to wake up where you are…- Slide, by the Goo Goo Dolls_


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